This week on the road – Jan. 26

Cessna+Stadium+was+originally+opened+in+1946+as+Veterans+Field+before+the+expansion+and+renaming+in+1969.+Wichita+State+University+plans+to+rebuild+the+stadium+to+create+an+8-lane+track+and+soccer+field.

Rachel Rudisill/ The Sunflower

Cessna Stadium was originally opened in 1946 as Veterans Field before the expansion and renaming in 1969. Wichita State University plans to rebuild the stadium to create an 8-lane track and soccer field.

MBB @ Memphis:

After leading the Tigers midway through the first half, WSU fell to Memphis 88-78. Senior forward James Rojas led the Shockers in scoring with a career high 19 points. Fellow senior guard Craig Porter Jr. ended the night with 5 assists and 3 blocks to go with his 11 points and 6 rebounds. Following close behind Rojas, junior Jaykwon Walton scored 15 points for the Shockers. With a field goal percentage of .446 to Memphis’ .536, the Shocker men were not able to pull out a win.

Silver and gold for the track & field team:

Without a distance squad, the women’s and men’s track and field teams still managed to take home wins. At the Ralph Lindeman Invitational, the women took home 1st out of 8 while the men finished 2nd out of 6. In the lead by 29 points, the women beat out Sacramento State with 125.33 points overall. The men finished 45 points behind the Air Force’s 158 points to score 113. 

Sophomore Jaleel Montgomery finished first in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.04 to secure him a spot in WSU record book at number 10. Coming in just behind him in second was number two in the WSU record book, redshirt junior Joseph Holthusen with a time of 8.09. Faith Turner, a sophomore, placed second in both the open 60 meters and open 200 meters. On the throwing side, Ridge Estes placed first in shot put with a throw of 16.89 meters. Winning the heptathlon was sophomore Adria Navajon with 5587 points. Taking first in 4 of the 5 events, sophomore Destiny Masters won the meets pentathlon.

Men’s Tennis @ Arkansas:

The Shocker men fell to the Razorbacks on Jan. 20, 4-1. Sophomore Kristof Minarik took home Wichita’s lone win in the singles, beating the Arkansas competitor in three sets. Other than Minarik’s match, the Razorbacks took the lead by winning every first set. With no wins in the doubles play, the Shockers were not able to make a comeback.

Distance Squad finishes strong at Cyclone Invitational:

Though only placing 6th in the event, sophomore Adrian Diaz-Lopez secured the 4th place spot in WSU record books with his 4:03.1 mile time. Moving up from 7th to 4th all-time, senior Clayton Duchatschek finished 5th in the 3,000 meter with a time of 18:12.61. On the women’s side, sophomore Farrah Miller and redshirt senior Maria Romero placed 2nd and 3rd in the 800 meter. Miller finished with a time of 2:15.72 while Romero finished close behind coming in at 2:16.96.

Women’s Tennis @ Kansas:

Though freshman Kristina Kudryavtseva won her first collegiate match, the WSU women still fell 6-1 to KU. After a first set loss, Kudryavtseva came back to win 6-0 then won the tiebreaker 10-4. Three Wichita players made their debuts against Kansas, but none could find a win.

Undefeated in Moody Coliseum:

The 71-69 victory over SMU gave Wichita their fourth consecutive win against the team on their own court,  never losing a game in Moody Coliseum since joining the American Athletic Conference. Leading on the scoreboard was junior guard Jaykwon Walton with 18 points for the Shockers. Of the 18 points, 8 came from the free throw line, though Craig Porter Jr. was the real star at the line. After getting fouled shooting a three with 35 seconds left, Porter sunk his free throws to put WSU in the lead to the win. Porter is also now the AAC leader in blocks after his four against SMU.