NORMAN, Okla. – Junior distance runner Lucky Maila led the MACU Men's Track & Field team at the Owen Hewitt Invitational hosted by the University of Oklahoma at the Mosier Indoor Track Facility on Friday, officially setting the fastest time in the NCCAA in the 3000-meter while Mohamed Zairi tallied the second-best national mark in the 800-meter.

The MACU Women's Track & Field team officially saw action in their first indoor meet of the season, as Cora Eyler set the Evangels' first ever marks in the 60-meter hurdles and 200-meter dash while Jessie Foster-Anderson posted MACU's top spot in the 800-meter book.
 
MEN'S EVENT RESULTS
Mile (25) (Open)

• Jaden Rodriguez – 4^th – 4:35.24
• Connor Gerth – 16^th – 4:54.05
• Jawad Salame – 19^th – 5:05.29
• Saulo Castro – 23^rd – 5:18.90

400-Meter (13) (Open)

• Jaden Ingram – 10^th – 55.50

800-Meter (6) (Open)

• Jonathan Avila – 3^rd – 2:04.70
• Daniel Ponce – 4^th – 2:06.30

200-Meter (18) (Open)

• Matthew Kletke – 17^th – 25.08

3000-Meter (12) (Open)

• Cameron Pearson – 7^th – 9:36.34
• Aidan Collins – 8^th – 9:39.36
• Blake Jensen – 9^th – 9:58.66

60-Meter Dash (32) (Open)

• Jagger Jay – 20^th – 7:36
• Sam Boyles – 28^th – 7.59

Pole Vault (Invite)

• Jagger Jay – NH (13-7.25 / 4.15-Meters)
• Sam Boyles – NH (13-1.5 / 4-Meters)

800-Meter (8) (Invite)

• Mohamed Zairi – 4^th – 2:00.80
• Chase Cotarelo – 5^th – 2:03.41
• Collin Seely – 8^th – 2:08.32

3000-Meter (10) (Invite)

• Lucky Maila – 5^th – 8:44.74

MEN'S EVENT SUMMARY

• Mile (Open)
  • The day opened with the men's open Mile as sophomore Jaden Rodriguez paced the Evangels with a fourth-place time of 4:35.24, notching the second-fastest indoor mile time in program history only behind his own best mark of 4:29.35 set at the PSU Crimson & Gold Invitational on Dec. 7, 2024. His mark just barely missed setting an automatic qualifying time for the NCCAA Indoor Championships by 0.24 seconds.
  • Connor Gerth also competed in the mile event, tallying a time of 4:54.05 while Jawad Salame and Saulo Castro each made their collegiate mile debuts, posting times of 5:05.29 and 5:18.90.
• 400-Meter (Open)
  • Making his MACU track debut, Jaden Ingram posted a 55.50 in the 400-meter dash to set the first ever 400-meter mark in MACU program history.
• 800-Meter (Open)
  • With the men's open 800-meter, freshman Jonathan Avila set one of the best indoor 800 times in program history for MACU, crossing the line in 2:04.70 to set at the time the sixth-best mark in program history.
• 3000-Meter (Open)
  • Sophomore Cameron Pearson posted a personal-best in the open 3000-meter race, crossing the line in 9:36.34 to place seventh.
  • Aidan Collins finished right behind him in eighth with a time of 9:39.36 while Blake Jensen in his first collegiate race posted a mark of 9:58.66.
• 800-Meter (Invite)
  • In the elite class 800-meter invite, sophomore Mohamed Zairi paced the Evangels with a fourth-place time of 2:00.80, setting the second-fastest indoor time in program history and setting his first NCCAA National Championship qualifying mark of the season, currently ranking as the second-best time in the NCCAA.
  • Chase Cotarelo also put together a solid showing, crossing the line in 2:03.41 while Collin Seely turned in a 2:08.32.
• 3000-Meter (Invite)
  • Junior Lucky Maila posted an incredible result in the 3000-meter invite race as his time of 8:44.74 notched the second-best mark in MACU's record book while officially setting the fastest mark in the NCCAA.
• 4x4000-Meter Relay (Invite)
  • The Evangels ran three different 4x400-meter relay tandems that all ran in the third heat of the event. The four-man squad of Ingram, Rodriguez, Zairi, and Cotarelo posted the best time of the three teams by crossing the finish line in 3:39.02. It was the second-fastest overall time for a MACU relay squad this year, but officially converts to the fastest time for NCCAA Championship qualifying as it sits as the eighth-best mark nationally.
  • The second-best time posted came from the team of Salame, Jensen, Collins, and Pearson with a 3:45.95 while the 'B' squad of Kletke, Avila, Ponce, and Seely finished right behind with a 3:46.63.

WOMEN'S EVENT RESULTS

• 800-Meter (17)
  • Jessie Foster-Anderson – 8^th – 2:45.11
  • Lisa Hernandez-Cruz – 14^th – 2:54.04
  • Kaylee Campbell – 15^th – 3:00.10
• 200-Meter (26)
  • Cora Eyler – 23^rd – 29.04
• 60-Meter Hurdles (30)
  • Cora Eyler – 27^th – 10.74

WOMEN'S EVENT SUMMARY

• 800-Meter (Open)
  • With the MACU women's track & field team making their season debut in the open 800-meter, freshman Jessie Foster-Anderson established the program's record mark with a time of 2:45.11 to place in the top half of the field.
  • Freshman Lisa Hernandez-Cruz making her collegiate track debut set MACU's second-best mark with a time of 2:54.04 while junior Kaylee Campbell crossed the line in 3:00.10.
• 200-Meter (Open)
  • Cora Eyler making her collegiate track debut set MACU's first ever mark in the open 200-meter, crossing the finish line in 29.04.
• 60-Meter Hurdles (Open)
  • On-top of making her MACU track debut in the 200-meter, Eyler also competed in MACU's first ever 60-meter hurdles event, crossing the line in 10.74.

UP NEXT

• Mid-America Christian will compete in a pair of events next week. The Evangels will return to Norman on Friday, Jan. 23 for the J.D. Martin Invitational while their elite competitors who qualify will return to Pittsburg, Kan. for the NAIA/JUCO Challenge at the Robert W. Plaster Center on Saturday, Jan. 24.