Track & Field Report: Henry, Aggies to host Ted Nelson Invitational

At the Corky Classic in Lubbock last weekend, a couple of Aggies etched their names into history with school-record performances. Legendary head coach Pat Henry joined TexAgs Live to detail some of those broken records and preview this weekend's Ted Nelson Invitational.

Key notes from Pat Henry interview

• We have a new pole vaulter Aleksandr Solovev. He's a great vaulter. He jumped an 18-10 this weekend. That's a tremendous jump. That was a new school record. Kennedy Wade ran a really good 600-meter. For her to break our record for that event is a really great accomplishment. Luca Santorum ran a 2:21:93, and that's a great run. We had three people have great performances.

• Our mile relay ladies had the national lead, but Arkansas was having a meet at the same time, and Arkansas ran a tiny bit faster than we did. I'm pleased with that group.

• Our men's relay, we got beat. We weren't running our whole four on there. We got to be healthy, and we're trying to get healthy right now.

• Kennady Fontenot has been doing a little more 800m work than 400m work with me. I think it's been a good change for her. She didn't even run on the 4x4 this week. It sends a good message to her that she's capable of doing things. 

• Santorum is new to us. He ran cross country. He didn't look very good in cross country but as a short half-miler/miler guy, it is hard to look good in cross country. The training was good for him. Normally, I wouldn't keep a half-miler running cross country, but this guy is different. 

• Joe Sarra is doing a really good job with Aleksandr Solovev. Solovev is very talented and is one of the best in the world right now. He is a big guy. He is about 6-foot-2, and he can run fast. That's what it takes to be a great vaulter.

• Winny Bii is a 43-10.75 triple jumper right now, and that's a big improvement even from last week. That shows a little bit about the team. We are starting to do things a little bit better. 

• Kimar Farquharson got beat by a guy who ran a smarter race than he did, but it's good for him right now. He's a great athlete. He's gonna have another year because he went to junior college at the right time.

• Jermaisha Arnold is running real well. She is maturing in the 400m event. She's starting to understand it a little bit more and just not going out there running full blast. You have to be technical about what you are doing. 

• Debora Cherono has not been with us long. We don't know exactly what she is going to be. I think she is going to be a good miler. We have a 3k indoors, but I think that might be a little bit long for her, so I was impressed by her in her first mile. I think she has the talent to be very good. 

• We have a good team, and the kids compete hard. It's like a ladder. It's the next step. Each meet is the next step up. Competition gets a little bit better each week, and that is what we want. It gets better here this weekend in the Ted Nelson Invitational.  

• An area of focus this weekend is being consistent this weekend of what you did last week. Understand the event no matter who you are and coming in there with some intention for yourself. Walk in the door and know, "What am I trying to accomplish today?” Use your training and then be able to walk out the door that evening and say to yourself, “I got done what I was gonna try to get done today."

• 14 teams are coming. I heard from Auburn this morning. They're having a hard time getting to the airport. Auburn might not be here. Georgia, South Carolina and Vanderbilt are here out of the conference. We have Air Force, Houston, SMU, TCU and Texas State. We have a number of schools here this weekend that have good programs. UTSA is coming here. It will be a good, competitive meet. It starts right at about noon and then is over at around 4:30 p.m. It is a good event to watch because it is not very long.