Davis eclipses 1984 all-conditions performance of Houston’s Lewis, along with wind-legal best achieved in 1985 by Joyner-Kersee at UCLA with 23-5.25 (7.14m) third-round leap in her first competition at Mike A. Myers Stadium since 2018, elevating to No. 5 all-time American competitor and equal to 27th in the world

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

The encore performance Friday for Texas star Tara Davis was even more impressive than the original record-setting effort two weeks earlier.

Davis, 21, followed the best women’s indoor long jump in collegiate history March 12 at the NCAA Division 1 Championships at Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville, Ark., by smashing the all-time collegiate outdoor mark with her world-leading leap at the 93rd Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays.

Davis, competing at Mike A. Myers Stadium for the first time since 2018 and jumping at Texas Relays for the first time since her prep career at Agoura High in 2016, soared to a fourth-round performance of 23 feet, 5.25 inches (7.14m) behind a slight tailwind to knock off all-time greats Jackie Joyner-Kersee of UCLA and Carol Lewis of Houston from the top spots.

“It’s so surreal. I feel like I’m dreaming,” Davis said. “I’ve been waiting for this moment for so long and it doesn’t event feel real. They’re legends and I can’t believe I broke their records.”

Lewis had achieved a wind-aided effort of 23-0.75 (7.03m) competing against professional athletes in San Jose in 1984.

Joyner-Kersee produced a wind-legal jump of 22-11.25 (6.99m) in UCLA’s annual dual meet against crosstown rival USC in 1985.

Davis, who won her first Division 1 indoor title with a leap of 22-9 (6.93m), becomes the first female athlete to simultaneously hold both collegiate indoor and outdoor records since Lewis in 1984-85.

She elevated to the No. 5 outdoor competitor in American history and is now equal to No. 27 all-time in the world. Davis’ performance marked the first time a U.S. female jumper surpassed 23 feet since Brittney Reese and Tianna Bartoletta both achieved the feat in 2017.

Davis also produced a third-round mark of 22-10.50 (6.97m), giving her two of the top five all-conditions performances in collegiate history.

Competing in front of her parents, Ty and Rayshon, along with select family and friends who were allowed to be part of a limited crowd of 25 percent capacity inside the venue, Davis decided to pass her final two attempts after opening the series with a pair of fouls.

She adjusted her starting mark on the runway from 121 feet to 126-9 following the two fouls to ensure a fair jump on her third attempt.

“I knew after the 6.97 (jump) there was definitely more in the tank,” Davis said. “I had to slow down a bit before I got to the board because of the wind. I had to scoot my mark (back) by almost six feet to stop fouling.”

Texas Tech senior Ruth Usoro, the reigning Division 1 indoor triple jump champion and fifth-place finisher in the long jump, took second with a sixth-round leap of 22-2.25 (6.76m). Usoro became the first collegiate female competitor with four jumps of at least 21-11.75 (6.70m) in the same series since 2017 and equaled the No. 25 performer in collegiate outdoor history to achieve the program record.

Sha’Keela Saunders, an adidas professional and the last NCAA competitor to achieve the same consistency competing for Kentucky at the Southeastern Conference Relays four years ago, took third with a third-round mark of 21-11.75.