The Iowa State track and field program closed out its opening meet of the new year today in strong fashion. The Cyclones finished the Larry Wieczorek Invitational in Iowa City, Iowa, with some strong performances from across the board.

First on the women’s side, sophomore hurdler and sprinter Katarina Vlahovic turned in her best race of the season so far. Competing in the 60m Hurdles, Vlahovic ran a blazing 8.41 seconds to lower her personal record by 0.05 seconds, finishing in third place. Fellow sophomore Kaylyn Hall finished seventh in a time of 8.67 seconds.

Switching over to the 400m dash, where sophomore Zakiyah Amos also had an impressive day. The Houston native ran in a competitive final to finish in 55.42 seconds, second only to Arizona junior Shannon Meisberger. This time was not only a personal best, but also put Amos at the seventh spot on the Cyclones’ all time list.

Elsewhere for the Cyclone women, junior Maggie Davis started off the new season with a third place finish in the 800m run. The Mount Vernon, Iowa, native also ran a personal best in the event, crossing the line in 2:13.53. Over at the 1 mile run, senior runner Abby Caldwell continued the trend for the Cyclones, producing another runner up finish to Minnesota Distance Elite athlete Heather Kampf in a time of 4:48.20.

In the men’s events, the day was highlighted by senior distance runner Festus Lagat in the 1 mile run. The Eldoret, Kenya, native is coming off another strong performance at the Jimmy Grant Invitational back in December, running a school record for the 1,000m in 2:20.88. Today, Lagat picked up right where he left off, producing a second place finish overall and in a time of 4:02.56. This race by Lagat was good enough for the seventh best time this season in the event.

Lagat was not the only Cyclone distance runner to get off to a fast start. Junior Thomas Pollard also ran an impressive race in the 3,000 meters, where he competed against a respectable field of runners from across the country. Pollard held his own throughout the course of the race, finishing second overall to Wisconsin’s Zack Snider in a time of 8:11.03. Another personal best for a Cyclone runner had been achieved.

The Iowa State men also had success in the sprints and middle distance races today, with senior Eric Foglantz running as “unattached” in the 400m to finish third overall with a time of 47.85 seconds. Sophomore Charlie Johnson finished ninth in 49.79 seconds. Moving over to the 800m, where junior Konner Roth also finished ninth in a time of 1:56.29.

Iowa State has one week of rest before they will be back in action on Jan. 25 at the Cyclone Open hosted at Lied Recreation Center in Ames. Field events are slated to commence around noon, with the running events set to begin at around 1 p.m.