Whyte Quickly Turns Around From USC's NCAA-Leading 4x100 Relay With 49.64 In Invitational 400; Washington's Hana Moll Breaks Own Pole Vault Collegiate Outdoor Record; Texas State's Elisbet Rut Runarsdottir Throws No. 9 All-Time Hammer Mark

By Keenan Gray of DyeStat

Sam Givner photos

INTERVIEWS | RESULTS|VIDEOS 

WALNUT, Calif. - In just a 50-minute window, Madison Whyte helped USC run an NCAA leader in the women's 4x100 relay and then powered through one of the fastest 400-meter times in NCAA history.

The NCAA indoor 400 runner-up helped USC post a school record with 42.12 seconds in the relay. That effort seemed to help Whyte warm up for the 400, where she ran the ninth-fastest collegiate time in history with a 49.64-second performance Saturday afternoon at the 66th Mt. SAC Relays.

Whyte, with her teammates Christine Mallard, Mia Brahe-Pedersen and Brianna Selby, bettered the school's previous best of 42.21 from 2019 and now are in a tie with Oregon for the third-fastest program in NCAA history. That time of 42.12 is also the seventh-fastest performance in NCAA history, trailing four teams from Texas anchored by Julien Alfred and two teams from LSU. Texas has the collegiate record in 41.55.

USC's win was so dominant that its crosstown rival, UCLA, finished over a second and half behind in 43.67 for second. Arizona was third in 44.03 and Stanford was fourth in 44.56. USC was also a half a second faster than South Carolina, which ran NCAA#2 42.62 at the Tom Jones Memorial in Gainesville, Fla.

"We already knew what we were going to do," Whyte said. "We just had to execute and we did it. We're just up from here."

Carrying momentum from the relay over to her only individual race of the afternoon, Whyte managed to hold off both Sanaria Butler and Kaylyn Brown, two members from Arkansas' winning 4x400 relay at the NCAA Indoor Championships, with her 49.64, which was another USC school record.

Butler finished second in an NCAA#3 49.86, the 13th fastest time in collegiate outdoor history, and Brown took third in an NCAA#4 50.30. LSU's Ella Onojuvwevwo in the NCAA leader in 49.59, No. 8 all-time.

Iowa State's Rachel Joseph ran an NCAA#9 50.98 for fourth. The 2024 Olympic 400 hurdles silver medalist Anna Cockrell ran a personal best 51.49.

Aside from one other individual track event won by a collegian, which was Saira Prince of Arkansas in the invitational 400 hurdles (55.86, NCAA#8), four pros combined to win the 100, 200, 800 and 100 hurdles.

American Tamari Davis, representing adidas, held off both of USC's Selby and Brahe-Pedersen with a 11.11-second run into a -1.6 headwind.

American Jenna Prandini won the invitational 200 in 22.43. The 33-year-old made her season debut with a new sponsor, On Athletics, after representing Puma for the majority of her professional career.

St. Vincent's Shafiqua Maloney, representing Puma, outlasted Arkansas' Sanu Jallow to win the invitational 800. The former Razorback Maloney won by a margin of 1:59.54 to 1:59.70. Jallow's time is second in the NCAA this season.

American Danae Dyer of HurdleMechanic, a 2026 World Indoor qualifier in the 60 hurdles, won the invitational 100 hurdles, defeating another American, Keni Harrison, 12.76 to 12.88. Oregon's Aaliyah McCormick the reigning NCAA outdoor and indoor short hurdles champion, was third in 12.96.

In the 4x400, Arkansas, despite dropping the baton on the final exchange, ran a 3;29.24 to beat Haystack, which was a pro line-up of Shae Anderson, Raevyn Rogers, Allie Jones and Jasmine Jones.

Off the track, Washington's Hana Moll raised her collegiate outdoor pole vault record up half an inch to 4.80 meters (15-9) to win the invitational competition by 25 centimeters. California's Ali Sahaida and South Dakota's Anna Willis both cleared a season's best 4.55m (14-11) to finish second and third, respectively. Both marks are also NCAA top five.

Texas State's Elisabet Rut Runarsdottir threw a lifetime best and an NCAA No. 9 all-time 72.89m (239-1) to take the women's hammer contest.

Texas Tech's Temitope Adeshina, the NCAA indoor high jump champion, cleared an NCAA#1 1.95m (6-4.75), beating Margueritte Lorenzo by seven centimeters. Vashti Cunningham was third at 1.83m (6-0).

Another Texas Tech athlete, Tamiah Washington, won the invitational triple jump with an NCAA#3 13.41m (44-0) leap.

Canadian 19-year-old Julia Tunks recorded a 63.58m (208-7) toss in the invitational discus, beating American Laulauga Tausaga, the 2023 world champion.

USC's Ashley Erasmus, a 2024 Olympian and 2025 World Outdoor qualifier for South Africa, won the invitational shot put by throwing 17.90m (58-8.75).