Josh Beam Smashes School Steeplechase Record, Claims Silver at Memphis Invitational

MEMPHIS, Tenn. and JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Breaking the school record in the 3,000m steeplechase by nearly five seconds, Josh Beam claimed silver and thrust himself into the national postseason conversation Saturday at the Memphis Invitational.
 
Running 8:55.64, Beam earned silver in the meet and topped the 9:00.42 school record originally set by Jonathan Cherono in 2009. That makes Beam the fastest steeplechase runner in the Ohio Valley Conference by over 13 seconds and places him 46^th on the NCAA West Prelims Performance List, squarely on the bubble of qualifying with two weeks' worth of competition remaining in the season.
 
While Beam was running to a new record, Janae Largins registered the second-best shot put mark in school history with a throw of 45-5.75 (13.86m) as she claimed bronze. Topping her previous career-best mark by 9.5 inches (0.24m), Largins recorded her second straight bronze medal in the event and her fourth top-3 finish in five meets this season.
 
Over in Florida, the women's 4x100m relay clocked 45.83 to finish seventh at the East Coast Relays. That goes down as the fifth-best time in school history as the quartet of Gabby Ayiteyfio, Landri Schreier, Takia Palmer and Maliyah Holland beat Florida Atlantic by nearly 1.5 seconds.
 
Takia Palmer continued the fast times in the 100m, clocking 11.82 to record the fifth-fastest time in school history as she placed 28^th. That followed Gabby Ayiteyfio's wind-aided 11.66 time, a mark that ranks second in school history when including all marks.
 
Back in Memphis, Talia Palmer finished fourth in the 100m with a personal best time of 12.43 while Kendall King's 12.51 mark to finish sixth also marked a personal best.
 
On the men's side, Teylen Patterson tied the ninth-fastest 400m hurdles time in school history as he ran 54.24 to place second while Juan Garza's 22.02 time in the 200m dash placed him third. Patterson also ran a personal best time in the 200m, clocking 23.20.
 
The Trojans now turn their attention to the Ohio Valley Conference Champsionships, set for May 11-13 in Edwardsville, Illinois.
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.
 
Get the latest Trojan news – including the weekly Trojan Report – delivered to you direct to your inbox by signing up for Little Rock Trojan E-News here.
 
#LittleRocksTeam