STANFORD, Calif. – All-American Taylor Austin demolished her own school-record in the 3000-meter steeplechase at the Stanford Invitational on Friday night.
 
"Taylor ran such a mature race, sticking with last year's NCAA Steeple champ for the first 2K," assistant coach Kyle Walsh said. "Running her career best as a season-opener is huge for her momentum heading into the rest of the outdoor season. It will be exciting to see her the rest of the spring."
 
Austin ran the best race of her career in a blazing fast heat of the 3000-meter steeplechase which led to her breaking her own school-record with a time of 9:54.01. That time gave her a fourth-place finish and it overtakes her previous school-record of 10:02.89 by eight seconds, also pulling her to within three seconds of the overall Missouri Valley Conference record set in 2012 by Aisha Praught of Illinois State. She now currently holds the top time in the Valley, first in the NCAA East Region and fourth in the nation.
 
Following Austin was Brooke Moore, who was switched from heat four of the 1500-meter run to a faster heat three. In the end, Moore finished ninth in her heat, crossing the line at 4:26.28 which leads the conference, is 14th in the East Region and 21st nationally.
 
"This was a big step forward for Brooke and showed she's just a notch away from returning to her high-level fitness. Her buildup from indoors continues and her 1500 and 800 performances will continue to progress in the coming weeks," Walsh said.
 
Akis Medrano also competed in the state of California, only he was at the San Francisco State Distance Carnival. Medrano competed against some high-level competition in the men's 10K and finished 32nd out of 109 runners that competed with a time of 30:35.53. His time currently leads the East Region (only 19 runners from the previous two weeks).
 
"Akis had an eye-opening experience in his 10K. He came through the 5K faster than he ever has, so I'm glad he got that experience. He will be prepared to handle that pace at his next opportunity and continue to build off of his All-MVC indoor campaign," Walsh said.
 
At the EIU Big Blue Classic, Ben Payton brought home a victory for the Sycamores in the men's 10K with a career-best time of 33:19.94, which is 16th in the East. Tara Cassidy and Emma Hayward also went one-two in the women's 10K at EIU. Cassidy pulled away for the win at 39:55.24 and Hayward was close behind at 40:41.75.
 
Competition at the Ole Miss Classic will begin tomorrow morning at 10:00 a.m. ET with the women's hammer throw and women's javelin throw. Action on the track will get started at 3:00 p.m. ET with the women's 3000-meter steeplechase.
 
For the latest information on the Sycamore Track & Field teams, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook and Twitter.