UTEP�s Korir Chases Collegiate Record at Brutus Hamilton Challenge

Berkley Ca. – UTEP’s freshman Emmanuel Korir was just .18 seconds away from the NCAA outdoor record in the 800m after running 1:43.73 at the Brutus Hamilton Challenge Saturday afternoon.

“This is by far the most impressive performance by a freshman. You can tell he has more to a lot left in the tank,” Head coach Mika Laaksonen said. “He is a very special athlete who will continue to surprise everyone watching.”

Korir clocked the second-fastest time in the world this year and set a new school record held by Peter Lemashon (1:45.68) set back in 1978. The talented freshman won the NCAA indoor national title in the 800m and set a world-best 1:14.97 in the 600m earlier this year. Korir notched the second-fastest time in program history in the 400m with a time of 44.67 just eight days ago.

The UTEP track and field team wrapped up the final regular season with 11 first-place finishes in 25 different events. Asa Guevara claimed the top spot with a time of 47.23 in the 400mk, while Carvellion Horn clocked a personal-best 50.31 to finish third.

Brandon Moss in his second competition of the outdoor season notched third-place in the long jump with a mark of 7.32m (24-0.25). James Bias clocked 10.74 in the 100m to garner a third-place showing.

In the men’s mile Jonah Koech (4:02.96) and Cosmas Boit (4:05.43) placed second and fifth respectively.

On the women’s side, Tobi Amusan notched a first-place finish in the long jump with a mark of 5.83m (19-1.50), followed by Tyler Ragin in fifth-place jumping out to 5.51m (18-1).

Samantha Hall threw for 14.06m (46-1.50) in the shot put and 55.17m (181-0) in the discus for a first and second-place showing. Lucia Mokrasova placed third in the shot put tossing for 13.22m (43-4.5), followed by Cierra Chenault with a mark of 11.95m (39-2.5) in eighth-place.

In the women’s 100m hurdles, Rebecca Oshinbanjo notched gold running a season-best 14.00, while Danielle Trought clocked a personal-best 14.33 to finish in third-place. Yanique Bennett (58.57) and Dreshanae Rolle (1:00.19) garnered first and second in the 400m hurdles.

Lilian Koech won the 800m clocking a personal-best 2:04.68 and puts her with the fourth-fastest time in school history. Linda Cheruiyot also ran a personal-best of 4:23.60 in the 1,500m claiming fourth overall.

The Miners will enjoy a week off after competing for three consecutive weeks and will return to action to host the Conference-USA outdoor championships May 11-14.

For live updates and breaking news be sure to follow @UTEPTrack on Twitter and uteptrack on Instagram.