The only thing that could slow down the LSU men’s sprint relay team on Saturday afternoon was a weather delay.
Early-afternoon rain forced the LSU Invitational to push back the start of the running events so workers could clear the Bernie Moore Track Stadium surface of standing water.
While the temperature dropped into the mid-60s and a little moisture remained on the track for the 4×100-meter relay, LSU’s Brandon Hicklin, Dorian Camel, Da’Marcus Fleming and Godson Oghenebrume weren’t fazed at all.
One week after clocking the fastest time in the nation at 38.36 seconds in taking the title in the Alumni Gold meet, that unit shaved off another tenth of a second Saturday to 38.26.
The time moved them from fourth to second on the school’s all-time list — just off the 38.24 run back in 1998. The 38.26 was the sixth-fastest in collegiate history.
It also went down as a stadium record, bettering the old mark of 38.32 by the LSU team that won the relay in claiming the team title at the 2002 NCAA championships.
The Tigers bested Florida, which came in with a 38.69. The Gators have the second-fastest time in the nation this spring at 38.54.
Oghenebrume returned later to win the open 100 meters with a wind-aided time of 10.01 seconds after clocking a windy 9.97 a week ago.
This time, he defeated Fleming, who clocked a 10.10, and U.S. Olympian Erriyon Knighton, who was third with a 10.13.
Hicklin finished sixth in the race, but he ran in the second heat and clocked a wind-legal personal record of 10.15 seconds.
From there, Hicklin capped a busy day with a second-place finish in the invitational long jump with a best of 25 feet, 10¾ inches.
LSU’s men picked up two other wins as John Meyer won the shot put with a season-best throw of 67-0 and Jackson Martingayle took the 3,000 in 9 minutes, 10.32 seconds.
LSU’s stadium record in the 4×100 was one of four Bernie Moore marks to fall in a field loaded with top Southeastern Conference teams and athletes who have competed on the international stage.
Arkansas’ Roje Stona won the men’s discus with a 219-10, Arkansas’ Ackera Nugent claimed the women’s 100-meter hurdles in 12.52 seconds, and U.S. Olympian Tara Davis-Woodhall won the long jump at 23-1¾.
Davis-Woodhall’s mark broke the stadium record of 22-9¼ set by former LSU star Sheila Echols in 1987.
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