During her four years in a K-State uniform, senior distance runner Beverly Ramos has enjoyed a storied career. The native of Puerto Rico can now add another bullet to her list of accomplishments.
Ramos earned a first-place finish in the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase and broke her own school record in the process, crossing the finish line in 10:15.43 on Thursday at the 101st Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa. She needed every ounce of energy she had to improve her personal best, as she surpassed her previous mark by just .13 seconds.
Fellow distance runner Martina Tresch, a freshman, also enjoyed some success in the event. She finished second behind Ramos with a time of 10:20.82, which improved her personal best by nearly eight seconds.
That success carried over into Friday as several Wildcats posted top-10 finishes in both track and field events. Freshman Sara Stoakes was the story of the day for K-State, as she won the women’s 800-meter. Her top time of 2:06.15 edged the second-place finisher — DePaul’s Mary Cate Quiett — by just .62 seconds and ranks fourth in school history.
Arguably the Wildcats’ best all-around performance came on the final day of action, as K-State combined for six top-five finishes on Saturday. The day was highlighted by a victory in a relay race that head coach Cliff Rovelto referred to as unique.
Jeffrey Julmis, Balazs Baji, Moritz Cleve and Mantas Silkauskas teamed up to take part in the men’s shuttle hurdle, a four-legged relay competition in which each athlete runs a 110-meter hurdle. The team won the preliminary round with a time of 58.92 seconds and improved that time to 57.38 seconds in the finals to take home the event title.
K-State’s women also enjoyed some success in Saturday’s relay action as sophomore Boglarka Bozzay teamed up with Stoakes, Tresch and Ramos for the 4×1600. The tandem finished fourth in the event with a time of 19:19.48.
Julmis and Baji competed individually in the 110-meter hurdle and finished second and third, respectively. Julmis set a personal record, finishing in 13.76 seconds and ranking third in school history.
K-State will return to action on May 1 when it hosts the Ward Haylett Invitational in Manhattan. The tournament marks K-State’s only home competition of the 2010 outdoor season.