Elijah Jefferson (photo by Dustin Wyatt)

Posted: Jan 29, 2023

Bulldogs Win Two Events, Set Records, and Finish Fifth at McNeese Indoor Invite

LAKE CHARLES, LA -- The Texas Lutheran track and field team continued its 2023 indoor campaign Friday. at the McNeese Indoor Invite. The Bulldogs rose to the occasion against tough competition - setting three new school records, winning two events amidst Division-I competition, and finishing fifth overall.

For the second meet in a row, Gerrit Twitero (Seguin/McQueeney) broke the school record in the high jump - eclipsing his previous record of 1.91m with a new school mark of 1.95m to finish second overall and first amidst Division-III competitiors. The mark moves Twitero into the top 40 nationally in the high jump and first place in the West Region.

With a school record breaking time of 21.72 seconds, Elijah Jefferson (San Antonio/Construction Careers Academy) won the 200m event, outpacing a field filled with Division-I sprinters. The time surpasses the previous record time of 21.87 seconds by former TLU All-American Darren Jones and moves Jefferson into a tie for tenth overall in Division-III.

After a legendary career on the pitch for the TLU Soccer team that saw him finish 10th all-time in Division-III in goals scored and earn three All-America honors in his career, Luis Green (Monterrey, Mexico/Smithson Valley) made an explosive debut on the track - setting a program record in the 600m with a winning time of 1:24.33. Green outlasted a sprinter from Division-I Nicholls State by one-tenth of a second to win the event.

Ezra Acero (San Antonio/Harlan), a USTFCCCA All-Region pole vaulter last season, finished second overall in his season debut with a mark of 4.35m.

In throws, Weston Geiger (Shiner/St. Paul) finished fourth overall in the weight throw with a new personal record mark of 15.67m. Freshman Dalon Harris finished fifth in the shot put with a mark of 14.03m.

As a team, Texas Lutheran finished fifth overall out of 12 teams, in a field filled with Division-I teams, with 42 total points.

Full Results: https://tf.tfrrs.org/results/77194/m/McNeese_State_Indoor_2

Coach Holland's Comments: "We were only able to bring a small fraction of our team, but those who were able to compete did well. I was pleased with how competitive all of them were and enjoyed watching everyone in all of their events. It was a great meet for us.

On the men's side there were three new school records:

Gerrit Twitero in the high jump (broke his own record set in December. Old 1.91m and new 1.95m)

Elijah Jefferson in the 200m (old record Darren Jones 21.87, new 21.72) -CURRENTLY TIED FOR 10TH OVERALL IN D3

Luis Green in the 600m 1:24.33 (old record was 600 yards)

The really cool thing for the men was that Elijah won first place in the 200, and Luis won first place in the 600. That's huge for a D3 athlete to come to a meet hosted by a Division 1 team and win! And, this was Luis' first-ever track meet. He's a great soccer player, and made the transition as soon as soccer ended, and is now making a name for himself in the sport of Track & Field. It's pretty awesome to see them both do so well.

Not to be outdone, the performance of Gerrit in the high jump and earning second place was equally as impressive as well as Ezra taking second in the pole vault. Dalon (5th) and Andrew (9th) - two freshmen - making finals in the shot put and then Riley (8th) and Weston (4th) earning spots in the weight throw final was huge. Weston and teammate Chase both had personal records in the weight throw; so big improvements already this early in the season. Another notable performance came from another freshman, Mateo, in the 400. He demolished his heat, and though his time wasn't spectacular, he ran it all by himself and on the slow track they have at McNeese.

As a whole, we did well. We didn't even have half of our team there and overall our men were 5th of 12 and our women were 8th of 12. I singled out some performances, but, generally, we had quite a few more. It was entertaining and fun to watch all day long. Can't wait for the next one!"

For all updates on Texas Lutheran Track and Field, follow @tluthrows and @tluxctf on Instagram as well as all official TLU Athletics accounts.