Tarleton track and field adds 18 standouts to 2022-23 roster

STEPHENVILLE - On the heels of a record-setting 2022 season, Tarleton track and field and cross country further blossomed its future with an impressive haul on the recruiting trail.

The Texans announced the addition of 18 newcomers - 11 men and seven women - to their 2022-23 roster on Thursday.

The group features 12 prep athletes from the Lone Star State, five college transfers who call Texas home and a rising triple jump star making the move to the Cowboy Capital all the way from Italy.

"We are excited and have high expectations for our initial group of [roster additions] for the 2022-2023 year," said head track and field coach . "Coach [Timothy] Gowans, coach [Chase] Rathke, and coach [Alex] Wills have done a great job bringing quality athletes into our program that will be able to help us immediately. We had a few areas that we felt we needed to address on both the women's and men's teams to continue to move us into contention for our ultimate goal, being at the top of the WAC. We have an assortment of high school and veteran athletes now across the board that potentially will fill some of the gaps we had in the past."

Of the high school athletes who now don Purple and White, 10 qualified for TX UIL Regional Championships this spring. Seven went on to advance to the TX UIL State Track and Field Championships, two of whom won individual state titles. Additionally, six of the athletes are featured in the top-50 in at least one event in the state of Texas and five rank inside the top-100 among all prep track and field athletes in the United States.

On the collegiate spectrum, four transfers qualified for outdoor national championships at their respective classifications while another departs a former Lone Star Conference rival as a six-time school record holder.

Below is a breakdown of each athlete who officially joined Texan Nation:

WOMEN

Jaylee Matthews | Throws | Stephenville HS

Make no mistake, Matthews is likely to become a fan favorite for the Tarleton undergraduate body and residents of the City of Champions. And it goes far beyond her decision to trade in the Honeybees' navy and yellow for the Purple and White. Matthews is among the elite discus throwers in the country. Her season and lifetime personal record (149' 10") in 2022 ranked 10th in the state of Texas and 41st nationally. She capped a decorated high school career by capturing a silver medal in the event at the TX UIL 4A State Championships and helping the Honeybees cross the finish line third at the meet in the 4x100m relay.

Taylor McFarland | Sprints / Hurdles | Godley HS

A two-time TX UIL 4A 400m State Champion and one of the fastest sprinters in the state is officially headed to Stephenville. McFarland claimed the 400m crown in 2021 and 2022. She capped her prep career in style, winning her second straight 400m state championship behind a lifetime personal record of 55.81. McFarland's versatility was particularly evident in the 100m hurdles, an event she earned a silver medal in at the 2022 TX UIL 4A State Championships. Her personal record of 14.34 ranked 34th in the state of Texas. McFarland also boasted the 40th-fastest 400m split among all prep athletes in Texas in 2022.

Ashonti Idlebird | Jumps | College Station HS

The addition of Idlebird augments Holland's goal of building one of the top D1 jumps programs in Texas at Tarleton. The incoming freshman was a 2022- Region 3-5A finalist in both the long jump and the triple jump. Had she competed for Tarleton during the 2022 season, Idlebird would have boasted Tarleton's No. 2 marks in both events. She notched a personal record of 18' 6" in the long jump in April to capture the UIL 5A District 19 title. Idlebird also boasts a lifetime best mark of 37' 11" in the triple jump.

Morgan Lamberson | Distance | Plano, TX

Lamberson brings a recently minted championship pedigree to the Texans' distance crew ahead of the 2022 cross country campaign. She closed her prep career by capturing gold medals in the 800m and the mile at the 2022 Texas Homeschool State Track and Field Championships. She cruised to the 800m crown in 2:25.42 and won the mile behind a time of 5:24.11. More than 20 seconds separated Lamberson from the next-closest finisher in the mile.

Kai Nixon | Jumps | Midlothian HS

A short stroll down Interstate 20 gifted Tarleton with one of the top triple jumpers in central Texas. Nixon qualified for the 2022 UIL Region 2-5A Championships in April on the strength of a lifetime best leap of 36' 8.5," which earned her a silver medal at the UIL 5A Area 13-14 Track Meet. Nixon also competed in the long jump and sprints throughout her prep career.

Jordan Rae | Multi | Coleman HS

Rae certainly looks the part of a potentially elite pentathlete and heptathlete, as she excelled in multiple events throughout her high school career. Jumps are her specialty, as she notched fifth place finishes in the high jump and long jump and finished eighth in the triple jump at the 2022 TX UIL 2A State Championships. Rae cleared 5' 4" in March to achieve a lifetime personal record in the high jump and went on to post personal bests of 18' 2.5" in the long jump and 37' 5.5" in the triple jump at the UIL 2A Region I Championships the following month.

Leah Rogers | Pole Vault | Mineral Wells HS

The latest vaulter to venture to the Cowboy Capital, Rogers is bound to fit in seamlessly with Tarleton's young nucleus of talent in the event. Her lifetime personal record of 11' 8," which she attained in 2022, would have cracked the Texans' all-time indoor and outdoor top-10 lists. She cleared the height at the UIL 4A Area 05-06 Championships on her way to a bronze medal at the meet and subsequent appearance at the UIL Region 1-4A Championships.

MEN

Noah Newman | Hurdles | Belton HS

Tarleton's men's program concluded the 2022 outdoor season ranked in the top-40 in the USTFCCCA Event Squad Rankings in both the 110m hurdles and 400m hurdles. The addition of Newman undoubtedly boosts the Texans' prospects of cracking the top-20 in either discipline in 2023. He enjoyed a senior season for the ages, posting top-15 finishes in the 110m hurdles and the 300m hurdles at the prestigious Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays, cruising to UIL 6A District 12 titles in both events and securing his place as a finalist in each event at the UIL Region 2-6A Championships. Newman owns respective personal records of 14.40 and 37.64. He ranked 19th in the state of Texas and 57th nationally in the 300m hurdles and possessed the 43rd-fastest 110m hurdles time in the Lone Star State.

Dazhaun Walton | Sprints | McMurry | San Antonio Harlan HS

Walton departs McMurry as one of the most decorated sprinters in program history following a two-year run in Abilene. He earned his first career set of All-American accolades after leading the War Hawks 4x100m relay team to an eighth-place finish at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships in May. Walton was also a national qualifier in the 200m and as a member of McMurry's 4x400m relay team. He is a four-time American Southwest Conference champion. He claimed back-to-back 200m crowns and guided the War Hawks to conference titles in both relays as a freshman in 2021. Walton's 200m personal record (21.09) would have been Tarleton's fastest time and ranked sixth in the WAC in 2022.

Joshua Harris | Jumps | Waxahachie HS

Harris, combined with reigning All-WAC first team honoree , gives Tarleton a deadly one-two punch in the triple jump. He leapt 47' 10" to win his first UIL Region 2-6A Championship in April and advance to the TX UIL 6A State Championships, where he finished seventh. Harris' mark would have placed him second at the 2022 WAC Outdoor Championships. He arrives at Tarleton ranked 22nd in Texas and 78th nationally among all high school athletes in the event.

Bryson Crippen | Hurdles | Weatherford HS

For Tarleton, the rich got richer with Crippen's decision to join an already deep hurdles squad. His season and lifetime personal record of 37.85 in the 300m hurdles ranked 23rd in the state of Texas and 76th nationally. Crippen, a two-time District champion in the 300m hurdles, raced to a ninth-place finish in the event at the TX UIL 6A State Championships to close the books on his prep career.

Gabriele Tosti | Jumps | Seriate, Italy

Tarleton traveled overseas to the Italian Peninsula and brought back a bonafide contender for the WAC triple jump championship in Tosti. His personal record of 51' 7.25" would have earned him the conference crown in 2022 by nearly three feet. Tosti has been ranked as high as 219th in the world in the event according to World Athletics. He also owns a personal record of 22' 1" in the long jump.

Angel Contreras | Distance | UT Tyler | El Paso Chapin HS

Rathke brought his top distance runner from UT Tyler with him to Stephenville ahead of his first year at the helm. On the track, Contreras clocked personal records of 8:19.55 in the 3,000m and 14:29.67 in the 5,000m, both of which would shatter Tarleton's school records, during the 2022 season. He won the 5,000m at the 2022 Lone Star Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships while also guiding the Patriots' distance medley relay team to a silver medal. Contreras departs UT Tyler in possession of six combined indoor and outdoor track and field school records. A rising junior, Contreras will debut for Tarleton this fall with the Texan cross country team.

Ca'Terrin Cox | Hurdles | Ennis HS

The potential for Cox to crack the WAC podium in both short and long hurdles is palpable. This spring, he ranked 26th in the state of Texas in the 300m hurdles (37.96) and 39th among his prep peers in the Lone Star State in the 110m hurdles behind a lifetime best time of 14.40. Those marks helped Cox finish his prep career as a finalist in both events at the 2022 UIL Region 1-5A Championships.

Everett Sadler | Sprints | Jacksonville College | Valley Mills HS

The homecoming for Sadler is a welcome one for the Texans. The soon-to-be sophomore qualified for the 2022 NJCAA D1 Outdoor Track and Field Championships in the 100m and 4x100m relay. He boasts collegiate personal records of 10.53 in the 100m and 21.45 in the 200m, both of which place him among the leaders in the WAC.

Canyun Staton | Sprints | Wimberly HS

Staton is sure to factor into Tarleton's sprint group and relays in a major way. He specializes in the 200m, an event he earned a silver medal in at the 2022 TX UIL 4A State Championships with a time of 21.42, which would have been the Texans' second-fastest split this spring. Staton also led Wimberly HS to a state championship in the 4x100m relay and second place finish at the meet in the 4x200m relay.

Aidan Matthews | Sprints | Hardin Simmons | Maypearl HS

The soon-to-be sophomore earned his promotion to the D1 stage on the strength of a standout freshman season at Hardin Simmons. Matthews qualified for the NCAA D3 Outdoor Track and Field Championships in the 200m, 4x100m relay and 4x400m relay after medaling in all three events at the American Southwest Conference (ASC) Championships. He clocked a wind-aided season and lifetime personal record in the 200m (21.20) at the ASC Championships and boasts a collegiate personal record of 10.61 in the 100m.

David Mvundura | Sprints | Southwestern College (KS) | Burton Academy

The Justin, Texas native brings an All-American pedigree with him to Stephenville. Mvundura became a first team NAIA All-American in May after guiding the Moundbuilders' 4x400m relay team to a bronze medal behind a time of 3:12.09 at the NAIA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in May. He was also a national qualifier in the 200m, an event in which he boasts a lifetime personal record of 21.40, and the 4x100m relay. Mvundura, a junior-to-be, departs Kansas as a two-time KCAC 4x400m relay champion.

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