Newby, Payton Continue to Headline as Distance Runners Lead Trojans Saturday

PITTSBURG, Kan. and FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – When Little Rock joined the Ohio Valley Conference, the prevailing opinion was the sprinters would likely make the biggest impact on the league. This indoor season, the distance runners set out to prove that wrong.
 
Nicholas Newby ran 4:07.16 to finish seventh in the mile while Andrew Payton placed 10^th as he clocked 4:08.18 as action wrapped up at the Gorilla Classic in Kansas while Desmond Frazier finished ninth in the shot put at the Tyson Invitational Saturday.
 
Newby's time ranks as the third-best mark in school history while Payton's time ranks fourth as the duo refuse to believe in a sophomore slump. A redshirt sophomore, Newby bested his previous top time by over five seconds while Payton, also a redshirt sophomore, eclipsed his personal best time by nearly two seconds. Those times also rank third and fourth, respectively, in the OVC this season.
 
Also showcasing for Little Rock's Team was Josh Beam and Zach McPhee in the 3,000m. Beam's mark of 8:27.02 ranks sixth in school history and placed him 13^th while McPhee, who set the school record in the 5K on Friday, now ranks eighth in the 3K after running 8:28.15 to finish 15^th.
 
In Fayetteville at the Tyson Invitational, Desmond Frazier placed ninth in the shot put with a throw of 53-10.5 (16.42m) while Johnathan Jones cleared 6-9.5 (2.07m) in the high jump to finish tied for ninth.
 
Back in Kansas, Zoa Adams placed 16^th in the 400m with a time of 58.05 while Matilda Horton ran 10:28.26 in the 3K to finish 22^nd. Kyla Lochtefeld clocked 5:15.37 to place 30^th in the mile.
 
Crystal Trowers jumped 35-0.75 (10.69m) in the triple jump, placing 22^nd.
 
Saturday's action wraps up the 2022-23 indoor regular season as the Trojans now turn their attention to the OVC Championships, set for Feb. 22-23 in Birmingham, Alabama.
 
For the latest information on Little Rock Track & Field, make sure to check out LRTrojans.com. You can also find the team on social media at @LittleRockTFXC on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
 
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