Freshmen crack record book, Gordon claims title as Barton men open outdoor slate in Louisiana #GoBarton

The indoor national champion Barton Community College men's track and field team opened its 2026 outdoor season Friday and Saturday at the Louisiana Classics held at the Home Bank Soccer and Track Complex in Lafayette, Louisiana, delivering a strong opening performance against a deep early-season field.

Setting the tone to begin the outdoor slate, the Cougars produced ten national qualifying marks with five personal bests in a balanced effort, highlighted by a pair of freshmen making immediate impacts on the program record book along with a sprint title on the track.

Leading the way on the oval, Keandro Gordon led five Cougars to top-ten finishes in the 400-meter, capturing the title in 47.00 in his first collegiate attempt at the distance. Shavan Jarrett followed in second with a national qualifying time of 47.63, while Trevoy Smith added a fifth-place finish in 47.95. Devonric Mack, also competing in the event for the first time, placed ninth in 49.48 with Nizer Smith finishing tenth at 49.53.

In the field events, two freshmen delivered immediate impact performances in etching their names into Barton's record book. Ilia Ciui captured the hammer throw title with a national qualifying mark of 58.89m, moving into fourth all-time in program history, while Chavez Penn cleared 2.11m in the high jump for a runner-up finish to slot seventh on the program's all-time list.

Barton's throws unit piled up four additional national marks to Ciui's performance, with Jaylon Calder recording qualifying efforts in both the discus (51.65m) and shot put (15.65m). Calder also added a personal best of 49.01m in the hammer, just shy of national standards. DeAndre Bristol contributed national qualifying marks in both the hammer (50.84m, personal best) and javelin (59.20m).

Elsewhere on the track, LaMont Johnson added a national qualifier in the 200m with a seventh-place finish in 21.06, while Dejuan Colbert reached qualifying standards in the 100m at 10.43. In the middle distances, Macdonald Jansen led the way with a runner-up finish in the 800m at 1:54.21, followed by Simeon Adams' fifth-place showing in a personal best 1:56.61.

The Cougars will take a limited group to their next outing Saturday, traveling to Arkansas City, Kansas, for an 11:00 a.m. start at the Mark A. Phillips Tiger Classic held at the Phillips Track and Field Complex.

Barton's Louisiana Classic Results (Complete Results) (PB/SB = Personal/Season best; NQ = National Qualifying)
100m: 13th Dejuan Colbert (NQ 10.43)
200m: 7th LaMont Johnson (NQ 21.06), 22nd Emmanuel Adams (21.86), 23rd Taigon Peterkin (PB 21.89)
400m: 1st Keandro Gordon (NQ 47.00 *1st Time), 2nd Shavan Jarrett (NQ 47.63), 5th Trevoy Smith (47.95), 9th Devonric Mack (49.48 *1st Time), 10th Nizer Smith (49.53), 39th Da'Marcus Brutus (53.91)
800m: 2nd Macdonald Jansen (1:54.21), 5th Simeon Adams (PB 1:56.61), 9th Craig Prendrgast (1:59.50), 13th Furious Trammel (2:01.56)
High Jump: 2nd Chavez Penn (NQ 2.11m, 6-11.00 *7th Program Best)
Discus Throw: 3rd Jaylon Calder (NQ 51.65m, 169-05), 9th Gabe Daugherty (45.16m, 148-02), 14th DeAndre Bristol (41.93m, 137-06)
Hammer Throw: 1st Ilia Ciui (NQ 58.89m, 193-02 *4th Program Best), 4th DeAndre Bristol (PB NQ 50.84, 166-09), 6th Jaylon Calder (PB 49.01m, 160-09), 9th Gabe Daugherty (46.30m, 151-11)
Javelin: 3rd DeAndre Bristol (NQ 59.20m, 194-02)
Shot Put: 8th Jaylon Calder (PB NQ 15.65m, 51-04.25)