TOPEKA, Kan. - The Texas A&M-Kingsville track and field program completed the first day of competition in the Sunflower State on Friday, as a pair of heptathletes stole the show at the Washburn Open.
 
Redshirt seniors Johnathon Harper (Lorena, Texas) and Dean Wallace (Geronimo, Texas) delivered strong performance through the first four events in the men's heptathlon, with Harper currently maintaining first-place with a score of 2,881.
 
The Lorena native snatched first with a blazing 7.17 performance in the 60m and never looked back, finishing within the top three in a trio of events. He took second in the long jump with a mark of 6.71m (22-00.25) before winning the shot put with a toss of 13.43m (44-0.75). Harper finished the day clearing a bar of 1.79m (5-10.50) in the high jump cementing his first-place position by nearly 60 points. 
 
Wallace, meanwhile, saw his best individual-event performance come in the long jump, where he finished fourth with a leap of 6.45m (21-02). Additionally, he competed well in the shot put, heaving the implement 11.62m (38-01.50) to claim fifth. 
 
The duo, along with freshman Nathan Melton (Lorena, Texas) and junior Roel De Leon (Edinburg, Texas), wrap up the heptathlon tomorrow, with the 60m hurdles, pole vault, and 1000m all on the docket. 
 
The Javelinas also delivered a pair of strong performances on the track, with junior Johnathon Smith (Bay City, Texas) taking fifth in the 200m dash with a time of 21.73, while freshman Lidia Lowe (Corpus Christi, Texas) clocked in at 1:30.83 in the 600-yard competition. 
 
Fellow first-year Javelina Cynai Christopher (Missouri City, Texas) capped off the day in the women's iteration of the 200m, as she sprinted her way to a time of 25.47 and an eighth-place finish.
 
 Saturday, competition in Topeka opens at 9 a.m., with sophomore Jezell Shows (San Antonio, Texas) competing in her first pentathlon since shattering the school record in the event on Dec. 3, 2021.
 
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