Alabama
Harvey Glance Tide and Tigers Dual Meet
Ruben Banks Becomes National Leader in Team Sweep Over Auburn at Harvey Glance Tide and Tigers Dual Meet
1/11/2024 11:57:00 PM | Track & Field, Cross Country
Miracle Ailes (high jump), Chandler Hayden (weight throw), Jekovan Rhetta (60m) and Mye’Joi Williams (shot put) joined Banks with program top-10 marks
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Alabama men's and women's track program opened the 2024 indoor season Thursday night with a resounding victory over in-state rival Auburn in the inaugural Harvey Glance Tide and Tigers Dual Meet, sweeping the men's (70-64) and women's (74-58) title.
The meet was highlighted by Ruben Banks who became the national leader in the weight throw after his 22.31-meter (73-2.50), personal-best launch on his fourth attempt, as the junior moved to No. 3 all-time in program history.
Before the action began, though, both schools set a rivalry aside and came together to honor one of the greatest sprinters from the state of Alabama – an Olympian, a mentor and a coach – Harvey Glance.
Alabama started the night with back-to-back wins in weight throw and pole vault on the women's side, featuring Crimson Tide career debuts for Chandler Hayden (21.31m | 69-11) and Mye'Joi Williams (18.37m | 60-3.25) as Hayden launched the third-farthest mark in program history behind a first-place finish. Milan Fields' victory in the 60-meter dash pushed the Tide out to a 24-19 lead in the women's team race before Williams stepped up in the shot put, launching the second-farthest throw in program history at 17.29 meters (50-10).
With five events still to be decided on the women's side, the Tide and the Tigers were tied at 43 points. From there, it was all Alabama. Miracle Ailes led the charge by securing a No. 6 UA all-time mark in the high jump (1.84m | 6-0.50), as Alabama had the title secured heading into the final 4x4 relay event, eventually securing the women's title by a 74-58 team score.
On the men's side, Jekovan Rhetta clocked a personal-best time of 6.66 to move to No. 9 in program history before Banks launched his national-leading mark in the weight throw. The UA men went back and forth all night with Auburn in the point-total race but kept fighting as the Tide racked up 11 straight top-two finishes heading into the 4x4 relay.
Leading Auburn 65-61, all Alabama needed to do was finish first and the title would be clinched. Without missing a beat, the Tide's 4x400-meter relay contingent of Jonathan Martin, Spencer Gudgel, Hasani Barr and Khaleb McRae rolled to a first-place finish to secure the team sweep in the inaugural dual meet.
Head Coach Dan Waters Said
"Overall, I'm very pleased with how hard our team fought tonight. A lot of respect to Auburn for how they competed, as well – they had guys go in back-to-back relays. That's tough. That's hard to do, but they wanted to compete to the very end. For us to come out with the team victory tonight says a lot about where we are right now. We're obviously going to tweak some things, though – we always want to get better, to raise the bar, but I'm really proud of everyone. Our season is only going to get more competitive, but there's several takeaways from this meet that we can hold on to and carry with us over these next two months.
"It's hard to talk about the legacy of Harvey Glance without getting emotional. He was such a beacon of light all the time. He lived his life to the fullest, he loved track and field, and he loved his athletes. To honor him the way we did, I was very happy with that and proud of all he was able to accomplish both here at Alabama, as well as across the state and throughout the sport. To have this meet named after someone so special and with a career just as special, I think it's great.
"I want to thank the Birmingham Crossplex, our staff and everyone who had a hand in planning/executing this meet – it's hard to host a meet in a different venue, but I'm very proud of what we were able to accomplish here today."
Crimson Tide Top Finishes
- Chandler Hayden (21.31m | 69-11) and Mye'Joi Williams (18.37m | 60-3.25) grabbed the first points of the dual meet, securing a one-two finish in the women's weight throw
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- Hayden now holds the third farthest mark in program history
- Victoria Faber took first in women's pole vault via a 3.87-meter (12-8.25) performance
- Jekovan Rhetta finished second in the men's 60-meter dash, clocking a new personal best 6.66 in the process
- Milan Fields earned another first-place finish for UA, in the women's 60-meter dash, after recording a 7.32 time
- On his fourth throw, Ruben Banks became the new national leader in the men's weight throw behind a personal-best performance of 22.31 meters (73-2.50)
- A trio of Alabama women's distance runners, led by Joy Gill, swept the top-three spots in the 3,000-meter run as Gill clocked a personal best (9:26.95) to finish just outside Alabama's top-10 list
- Victor Kiprop clocked 8:12.43 to take first place in the men's 3,000-meter run
- In the men's 500 meters, Khaleb McRae (1:01.07) and Spencer Gudgel (1:03.57) finished first and second, respectively, with Margaret Conteh finishing second on the women's side (1:16.46)
- Miracle Ailes grabbed a first-place finish in the women's high jump as her 1.84-meter (6-0.50) mark is now tied for the sixth-highest jump in program history
- McKenzie Daniel clocked 2:52.36 for the first-place finish in the 1,000m. Oussama El Bouchayby also took first in the men's race via a 2:24.30 performance.
- Hasani Barr (33.76) and Ariike Elijah (37.75) each finished second in the men's and women's 300 meters, respectively
- Julian Collins (7.37m | 24-2.25) and Louis Martinez (5.20m | 17-0.75) each claimed first in the men's long jump and men's pole vault, respectively
- In her second event of the night, Mye'Joi Williams used a 17.29-meter performance (56-8.75) to take first in the women's shot put as the Crimson Tide newcomer now holds the second-farthest mark in program history
- Amani Heaven also made her UA debut in shot put, recording a 15.49-meter (50-10), second-place finish
- On the men's side, Alan de Falchi finished second (17.60m | 58-1) in shot put
- Alabama's women's distance medley relay (Jami Reed, Sarah Tillotson, Macy Schelp, Hilda Olemomoi) clocked 11:30.72 to take first and secure the women's title over Auburn
- Alabama's men's 4x4 relay (Jonathin Martin, Spencer Gudgel, Hasani Barr and Khaleb McRae) secured the men's title with its first-place finish in the final event of the meet (3:21.07)
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Players Mentioned
