NCAA Leads, School Record Highlight Day Two in Arkansas

Saturday, January 31

Fayetteville, AR

All Day

University of Oregon

Razorback Invitational

Photo by: GoDucks.com

NCAA Leads, School Record Highlight Day Two in Arkansas

01/31/26 | Track and Field

Peyton Bair became the No. 4 heptathlon performer in NCAA history with his 6,371 points.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Oregon track and field team closed out its stay at the Razorback Invitational with three wins Saturday and nine top-10 program marks including a school record from Ben Smith in the shot put. Smith, Silan Ayyildiz (mile) and Peyton Bair (heptathlon) secured victories on day two of the meet.

Bair registered lifetime bests in six of seven events on his way to scoring 6,371 points at the Razorback Invitational. In addition to the meet win and record, Bair becomes the No. 4 performer in NCAA history and now sits behind Ashton Eaton—6,499 points—on the UO all-time list. The Kimberly, Idaho, native also moves into a tie for fifth with Bryan Clay on the all-time U.S. list. With Saturday's effort, Bair takes down his previous best of 6,104 points from last February.

The Oregon men went 1-2 in the heptathlon with Aiden Carter posting a lifetime-best performance of his own. Carter added more than 300 points to his best, finishing the two-day competition with 5,790 points. Already a top-10 performer, he goes from ninth to sixth in the Oregon record book.

In the first field result of the day, Smith got out to a lifetime best of 19.82m/65-0.5 to break the school record in the shot put. His day's best came in the fifth round, just easing past the previous UO mark of 19.81m/65-0 set by teammate Kobe Lawrence two weeks ago at the Thane-Baker Invitational (Jan. 16). All four of Smith's legal throws were beyond 19 meters.

Based on national marks entering the meet, Smith and Lawrence currently rank third and fourth in the NCAA this season. Lawrence (19.47m/63-10.5) finished third in Saturday's competition.

Ayyildiz broke the meet and Randal Tyson Track Center facility record with her NCAA-leading time of 4:25.11, also good for No. 2 in the world this year. Paced by teammate Samantha McDonnell, Ayyildiz took over the lead over the final 800 meters. The UO women finished 1-2 with Juliet Cherubet taking second in a lifetime best of 4:32.03, knocking more than seven seconds off her previous best.

Cherubet also becomes the No. 8 mile performer in program history with Saturday's effort.

The Men of Oregon posted five sub-4:00 performances and a pair of top-10 program times in the mile. Elliott Cook, the race runner-up, clocked in at 3:53.57 while Tomas Palfrey lowered his lifetime best to 3:53.86, good for the No. 6 and 7 spots, respectively, on the all-time UO list.

James Harding, off his win at 800 meters Friday evening, crossed the finish in 3:55.78 and was closely followed by Simeon Birnbaum (3:55.88) in the first of five sections. Benjamin Balazs took more than a second off his lifetime best with a time of 3:57.75 to win section two. All five Ducks finished inside the top 10.

For a second time in as many meets this season, Kai Graves-Blanks ran a lifetime best in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 7.69 in Saturday's semifinal round. The UO junior is now tied for fourth on the Ducks' all-time list. Graves-Blanks carried a previous best of 7.75 into the weekend. He finished ninth overall, just missing a spot into the final.

The UO men picked up another top-10 program performance from Tre Betts in the triple jump. On his second attempt of the day, the Mobile, Ala., native got out to 15.75m/51-8.25 to move to No. 7 on the Oregon indoor list. Betts finished just off his indoor best of 15.79 meters from his career at Pittsburg State.

Diana Cherotich was sixth overall and fourth among collegians in the top section of the 3,000 meters to close out the Ducks' weekend in Arkansas. She clocked a time of 8:55.42 in her first indoor race at the distance, good for the No. 5 spot in UO history. Cherotich is the school-record holder at 5,000 meters. Cherubet, back from the mile, finished in 8:58.12 for eighth place.

Notable: Cain Evans ran a lifetime best of 4:00.52 in the mile; entered the meet with a previous best of 4:06.72 from the BU Opener in December … Aaliyah McCormick lowered her season's best to 8.03 with time from Saturday's semifinals; finished fourth in final (8.08) … Anthony Fast Horse lowered his 3,000-meter best by 13 seconds to 7:55.51; finished 10^th overall.

Up Next: Wilma Nielsen competes in the women's Wanamaker Mile Sunday (2:40 p.m. PT, NBC) at the 118^th Millrose Games in New York. The mile field is also scheduled to feature past UO standouts Susan Ejore, Jessica Hull and Klaudia Kazimierska. Nielsen, the reigning NCAA champion, carries a season-best 4:26.74 from last weekend's Dr. Sander Scorcher, also at The Armory.

Saturday Results
Razorback Invitational (Fayetteville, Ark.)
MEN
60 Meters – semifinals
13. Grant Valley – 6.80 (=PB)
--. PJ Ize-Iyamu – DNS

60 Meters – prelims
13. PJ Ize-Iyamu – 6.71q (SB)
22. Grant Valley – 6.82q
35. Jaelon Barbarin – 6.95

400 Meters
35. Fuad Omer – 48.32 (SB)

Mile
2. Elliott Cook – 3:53.57 (PB, UO #6)
4. Tomas Palfrey – 3:53.86 (PB, UO #7)
6. James Harding – 3:55.78 (PB)
9. Simeon Birnbaum – 3:55.88
10. Benjamin Balazs – 3:57.75 (PB)
22. Cain Evans – 4:00.52 (PB)
36. Ben Greene – 4:08.76
--. Matthew Erickson – DNF (pacer)

3,000 Meters
10. Anthony Fast Horse – 7:55.71 (PB)

60m Hurdles – semifinals
9. Kai Graves-Blanks – 7.69 (PB, =UO #4)

60m Hurdles – prelims
10. Kai Graves-Blanks – 7.81q

Triple Jump
7. Tre Betts – 15.75m/51-8.25 (UO #6)

Shot Put
1. Ben Smith – 19.82m/65-0.5 (PB, UO #1)
3. Kobe Lawrence – 19.47m/63-10.5

Heptathlon – Day 2/Total
1. Peyton Bair – 6,371 points (PB, UO #2)
               1. 60m Hurdles – 7.92 [1,002 pts]
               T1. Pole Vault – 5.05m/16-6.75 (PB) [926]
               3. 1,000 Meters – 2:41.02 (PB) [862]
2. Aiden Carter – 5,790 points (PB, UO #6)
               3. 60m Hurdles – 8.10 [957 pts]
               5. Pole Vault – 4.65m/15-3 [804]
               7. 1,000 Meters – 2:51.52 [750]

WOMEN
60 Meters – prelims
27. Lily Jones – 7.49
28. Amirah Shaheed – 7.50
40. Niya Clayton – 7.64

400 Meters
38. Annaleise Taylor – 56.50

Mile
1. Silan Ayyildiz – 4:25.11 (FR, MR)
2. Juliet Cherubet – 4:32.03 (PB, UO #8)
37. Allura Markow – 5:01.19
--. Samantha McDonnell – DNF (pacer)

3,000 Meters
6. Diana Cherotich – 8:55.42 (UO #5)
8. Juliet Cherubet – 8:58.12
17. Katie Clute – 9:18.27 (SB)

60m Hurdles – final
4. Aaliyah McCormick – 8.08

60m Hurdles – semifinals
3. Aaliyah McCormick – 8.03Q (SB)

60m Hurdles – prelims
4. Aaliyah McCormick – 8.08Q
31. Annaleise Taylor – 8.73

Triple Jump
11. Cassandra Atkins – 12.81m/42-0.5
21. Maleigha Canaday-Elliott – 12.34m/40-6 (SB)

For more news and information about Oregon cross country and track and field, follow @OregonTF on Facebook, Instagram and X.