HOUSTON – Members of the University of St. Thomas women's track and field team achieved season bests this weekend at the Victor Lopez Classic hosted by Rice University.

As the only NCAA Division III team competing against Division I programs in the collegiate portion of the meet, the Celts got to test their skills against some of the best scholarship athletes in the nation.

The 4x100-meter relay team of Ny'Cierra Hinton, Kaela Sawyers, Clydajia Williams, and Jamaya Coaster highlighted the Celts contingent at the weekend meet as they turned in a time of 49.89 seconds. In doing so, they became the first quartet in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference this season with a time under 50 seconds.

In the 800-meter run, UST's Karelann Skinner set season a season personal best by finishing with a time of 2 minutes, 33.56 seconds. That time placed 19th in the event and was better than that of two Division I runners at the meet.

Skinner shaved almost seven seconds off her previous top time of the season and moved up five places to 12th among the SCAC's best times in the event in 2022.

In the 100-meter event, Hinton finished eighth out of 11 runners with 12.92 seconds, ahead of teammate Coaster and runners from HBU and Lamer. The time of 12.92 matched her season-best time (and fifth-best time in the SCAC), but unlike her earlier run, Hinton ran against a headwind (0.1 meters per second) at this weekend's event.

Meanwhile, Coaster finished ninth in the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.95, which topped her season's previous best of 13.18 seconds and moved her into the SCAC's Top Ten.

In the 200-meter dash, Christina Stinson finished 17th out of 23 runners with a time of 26.56 seconds, ahead of four Division I competitors. Kaela Sawyers finished with 26.96 seconds, a time that would put her in the SCAC's Top Ten.

The Celts return to action Saturday, April 2, when they will compete at the Houston Alumni Invitational, hosted by the University of Houston.