Track & Field Team Records Five Personal Bests at McDaniel College: Freshmen athletes beginning to hit their stride across all events

Saturday, April 4, 2026 - Westminster MD - The Cardinals T&F team traveled to Westminster to compete at McDaniel College, who opened their newly renovated track & field facility.  After battling frigid and cold weather at St. Mary's College of MD last weekend; the warm 78-degree weather was a welcomed condition to the early outdoor track season. The Green Terror Invite on April 3^rd was a good meet for this young team.  Five different personal bests (PBs) were achieved in the 400m, 800m, 1500m, 5,000m and Shot Put events.

 

Head Coach Mark Pryor has tried to steadily bring his young student athletes along with their introduction to college level competition.  Coach Pryor noted that while his team's performances are not quite where they needed to be, he was happy to see them moving in the right direction.

 

Pryor stated, "we opened the season in Richmond with warm weather, and it gave me an indication of where our team's fitness level was. But the cold & windy weather prevented any improvements in performance the following weekend. Staying close to home and running in favorable weather was exactly what we needed".

 

The Cardinals have not only been running on the track but have enjoyed an unexpected performer in the field events, notably the throws (Shot Put and Discus Throw). Freshman Kelechi Irogebu (Woodlawn HS) who is entirely new to the sport has put himself on the national junior college performance lists in both throwing events after just two meets.

 

Freshman Ohene Obiri Yeboah (Owing Mills HS) has been battling bronchitis throughout the cold winter months of December thru March. The congestion in his chest prevents Ohene from breathing freely, but Coach Pryor has been diligently bringing his fitness level back to where it was during the cross-country season.  Ohene's race at the Univ of Richmond was encouraging but showed more promise at McDaniel College.  

 

Fellow freshman Xavier Vallejo (Catonsville HS) also saw a vast improvement in his performance in the 400-meter dash. Having only run one year of track in high school, Xavi is still learning the event and specific event techniques, but Coach Pryor is happy with and appreciates his consistency in practice attendance and work ethic. 

 

The next scheduled competition will be at Howard County Community College for the Mid-Atlantic JUCO Invitational on April 10-11th.  This meet also serves at the Region XX T&F Championships for junior colleges in the MD, PA, DC and VA areas.  Coach Pryor is hoping that his team's performances can continue their upward trend with more improvements.