Abilene Christian University's track and field team had a strong showing at the Charlie Thomas Invitational in College Station, Texas, highlighted by Nele Huth's new school record in the women's pentathlon. Several athletes achieved personal bests across multiple events, contributing to an impressive weekend performance. The meet featured standout results in distance runs, throws, and multi-events.
The Charlie Thomas Invitational showcased Abilene Christian University's (ACU) depth and talent in track and field. Leading the way was Nele Huth in the women's pentathlon, where she placed fifth overall and third among collegians. Huth shattered the ACU school record with a total of 3,847 points, surpassing her previous best by more than 450 points. She recorded personal bests in every event: 60m hurdles in 9.01 seconds, high jump at 5 feet 3.75 inches (1.62 meters), shot put at 41 feet 8.5 inches (12.72 meters), long jump at 18 feet 1.5 inches (5.52 meters), and 800m in 2:24.58.
Natalie Poe also competed strongly in the pentathlon, achieving a personal best of 3,564 points with improvements in the shot put (33 feet 8 inches/10.25 meters) and 800m (2:22.26). In the men's heptathlon, Canaan Fairley advanced from eighth place after day one—marked by a personal best shot put of 39 feet 11.5 inches (12.18 meters)—to fifth overall by the end. He set personal bests in the pole vault (13 feet 9.25 inches/4.20 meters) and 1,000m run (2:44.86), tying his prior total of 5,366 points.
Distance events yielded further successes. Andruw Villa won the men's 5,000m with a personal best of 14:09.54, leading the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) performance list. Hannah Kasper took third in the women's 5,000m at 18:31.75, another personal best. Mark Barajas placed fourth in the men's 3,000m with 8:24.71, close to his seasonal mark, while Saylor Stevenson finished ninth in the women's 3,000m at 10:19.56.
In throws, Rhet Punt secured fourth in the men's weight throw with a season-best of 65 feet 2.25 inches (19.87 meters), ranking second on ACU's all-time list. The women's shot put saw career and season bests from Mariana Van Dyk (ninth, 46 feet 11 inches/14.30 meters) and Ciara Tilley (11th, 46 feet/14.02 meters). Middle-distance races featured personal bests: Vincent Luffey 10th in the men's mile (4:09.17), Benjamin Castro seventh in the men's 800m (1:50.20), Emma Santoro 13th in the women's 800m (2:11.40), and the women's 4x400m relay 12th overall (3:46.93), its best time since 2024.
Other notable efforts included Nickens Lemba's 17th place in the open 400m (48.78) and Evan Martin's 10th in the men's 800m (1:51.73). Anna Vyn placed 15th in the women's 800m with a season-best 2:12.55.
