CLEMSON, S.C. — The Auburn track and field team heads to Clemson, South Carolina, this weekend to compete in the Bob Pollock Invitational, set for Jan. 30–31 at the Clemson Indoor Track & Field Complex.
“This is the meet where we felt some of our guys who competed late into the summer at the world championships in Tokyo would open up, and sure enough, you’re going to see some really familiar names,” Auburn head coach Leroy Burrell said.
Action begins Friday at 11:45 a.m. CT with the women’s 5,000 meters, while field events get underway at noon. Saturday’s schedule opens with the women’s pole vault at 10 a.m., followed by running events beginning at 1 p.m. with the women’s 800 meters. Auburn will bring 24 women and 23 men to compete over the two-day meet.
“Clemson has one of the best tracks to run on in the country,” Burrell said. “Especially the oval, it might be one of the smoothest indoor tracks there is. It’s really important that our guys get off to a great start.”
National champion and Bowerman Award finalist Ja’Kobe Tharp will make his 2025 indoor debut in the 60-meter hurdles on Friday afternoon. It will be Tharp’s first competition since competing in the finals of the 110m hurdles at the World Championships in Tokyo, Japan, in September. His last indoor meet was the 2025 NCAA Indoor Championships, when he won gold in the 60m hurdles.
“On the men’s side, we’re really excited about Asande Mthembu, the second-ranked 400-meter hurdler in the world, coming to us from South Africa,” Burrell said. “He’s going to make his debut. Then you’re going to see familiar faces like Ja’Kobe, Kayinsola, and Israel. Those guys are going to light up the 60 meters. It’s a very competitive event, and they’ve been itching to get out there and put their names on the list.”
The Tigers enter the weekend following a strong showing at the Samford Open on Jan. 17, where Auburn recorded 12 individual event wins and 13 new personal bests at the Birmingham CrossPlex.
In the sprints, senior Omari Lewis captured gold in the men’s 60 meters with a personal-best time of 6.58, the fourth-fastest mark in Division I this season and a new Samford Open record.
On the women’s side, Reese Webster continued her standout season, winning both the 60 meters and 200 meters, highlighted by a meet-record 7.32 in the 60.
Senior Cassidra Thompson claimed gold in the women’s 400 meters with a time of 54.31. On the men’s side, seniors Devin Nugent and Lebron Bessick finished second and third, respectively, in the 400 meters and teamed up on the winning 4x400-meter relay that posted a time of 3:13.86.
In the field events, Auburn swept the men’s throwing competitions, led by junior John Leonard’s win in the weight throw and senior Matthew Rueff’s victory in the shot put. All-American Megan Hague continued her strong season with a win in the women’s shot put, recording the second-best mark in Auburn history. Senior Alyssa Quinones-Mixon earned her second pole vault first-place finish of the season.
In the distance events, junior Hallie Portfield led the Tigers with a win in the women’s mile, clocking 4:50.38 as Auburn claimed four of the top five finishes and set five personal bests.
Live results for the Bob Pollock Invitational can be found here.