KINGSVILLE, Texas – The Texas A&M-Kingsville Women’s Outdoor Track and Field All-Decade team presented by Whataburger was released on Wednesday, honoring the program’s top performers from 2010 through the 2019 outdoor seasons.
FEMALE OUTDOOR TRACK ATHLETE OF THE DECADE
In addition to representing her native Belize in the 2012 London Summer Olympic Games, Martinez remains one of the most decorated student-athletes in the history of DII track. With accolades including two national titles as a member of the 4×100 meter relay team, as well as All-America status in four different events from 2014-2016 she certainly has left her mark on the Blue and Gold track and field program.
In addition to her dominance on the track, Martinez was named one of the nine NCAA Woman of the Year finalists in 2017. That was due to her efforts in the community along with her dedication in the classroom that led to being recognized by the College Sports Information Directors of America, being placed on their Academic All-America team. She graduated summa cum laude with a 4.0 GPA and received the Texas A&M-Kingsville First Generation Championship Award.
Her name is etched atop the Javelina record books several times with her holding top times in five different events. She holds the school record in the 100-meter dash (11:46), the 200-meter dash (23.33), the 4×100 meter relay (44:51), and the 4×400 meter relay (3:41.22). Additionally, she sits second in the 400 meters at 53.89.
FEMALE OUTDOOR FIELD ATHLETE OF THE DECADE
After beginning her collegiate career as a walk-on, Somoye quickly rose through the ranks before earning a National Championship in the hammer throw. In the final event of her career, at Pepsi Field at Javelina Stadium Somoye launched the hammer 56.86m (186-6) to claim first-place, earning herself a national title.
Somoye owns every top-ten mark in the hammer throw, with her distance of 60.24m (197-8) serving as the school and the Lone Star Conference record.
She was a mainstay on the all-conference list from 2016-2019, logging a second-place finish in 2016 and first-place finishes in 2017, 2018, and 2019, while earning qualification to the national meet from 2017-2019.
WOMEN’S 4X100 METER RELAY TEAM OF THE DECADE
Brittney Holcombe, Kaina Martinez, Teandria Taylor, Plaserae Johnson
Martinez and company combined for a blistering time of 44:51, the fastest of any women’s 4x100m relay team in Javelina history. The group did so in the preliminary rounds of the 2016 National Championship in Bradenton, Fla., en route to winning the event. Their finals time of 44.60 sits second all-time.
WOMEN’S 4X400 METER RELAY TEAM OF THE DECADE
Amber Perry, Jasmine Miller, Kaina Martinez, Kathy Trevino
The quartet teamed up to win the 2015 National Championship in the event, with a blazing-fast time of 3:41.22, a TAMUK school record. In addition to their success in Allendale, Mich., this squad holds the top-six performances in school history, with all times coming from the 2015 season.
WOMEN’S SPRINTERS
Plaserae Johnson
Johnson was awarded All-American status both during the 2016 and 2017 outdoor seasons. In 2016 she competed in the 100-meter dash at the national championship where she clocked in at 11.84, good for a sixth-place finish, and also qualified for the 200-meter dash. She left Bradenton, Fla. a National Champion in the 4×100 meter relay as a part of the Relay Team of the Decade that completed the race in 44.60. During the 2017 championships, Johnson placed 10th in the 200m, ninth in the 100m and took bronze as a member of the 4x100m.
Perry was an integral part of the Women’s 4×400 Meter Relay Team of the decade was a major piece of the squad’s National Championship in 2015. Her success, however, was not limited to just the relays, as she qualified for nationals in the 400-meter race in three consecutive seasons. Her best finish came in 2013 where she clocked in at 54.86 and placed 10th. The all-time performance list sees her hold seven of the top ten spots with her personal best of 53.97 slotted third. Additionally, she was a member of every top-five 4×400 meter relay team in school history.
WOMEN’S MIDDLE DISTANCE
Erica Alvarado
Alvarado was an LSC All-Academic selection and a COSIDA Academic All-District honoree in 2010, as well as a perennial All-LSC selection throughout her career. Her 2010 statistics include a fifth-place finish in the 5k at the conference meet as well as multiple personal-bests that sit high up in the Javelina record books. Her 1500m time of 4:46.98 is fourth all-time, she is fifth all-time in the steeplechase at 11:55.70, and holds the third-best 5k time at 18:16.35. Additionally, Alvarado recently competed to the Team USA Olympic Marathon Trials in Atlanta, Ga., where she completed 26.2 miles in 2:59:32.
WOMEN’S LONG DISTANCE
Sitting second in the all-time steeplechase performance list with a time of 11:49.31 Guerrero led the distance program from 2016-2019 and had top-10 finishes in three different conference meets. Her top finish in the steeplechase came in 2011 where she took fourth clocking in at 12:22.63. Additionally, at the 2018 conference meet, she placed 10th in the 5k and 9th in the steeplechase.
WOMEN’S HURDLES
Almarcha-Conejero earned All-Region honors in 2018 and earned qualification to the National Championship in the 110-meter hurdles, where she finished 16th with a time of 14.34. Her lone season with TAMUK saw her reach the conference podium in multiple events as she was the champion in the 110m hurdles, running a personal best of 13.92 for the fourth-fastest time in school history. She also took home a bronze medal for her performance with the 4×400 meter relay team that clocked in at 3:48.15.
WOMEN’S JUMPERS
A dominant high jumper, Brigance earned All-America honors in 2018 for an eighth-place finish at the NCAA Outdoor Championships at 1.68m (5-6). Additionally, she owns the school record in the event as she cleared a bar of 1.76m (5-9.25) en route to a conference championship. The 2017 season saw her place third in the 4×100 meter relay at the national meet with a time of 44.98 and collect a third-place finish in the high jump at the conference level.
Samantha Alvarez
Career highlights for Alvarez include a second-place finish at the 2011 national meet, where she reached a height of 1.71m (5-7.25) and an academic All-American selection. She was named LSC Field Athlete of the Year and was honored by CoSIDA as an Academic All-District selection in 2011 as well. She is seventh in Javelina high jump history at 1.74m (5-8.5) after clearing the height at the 2011 LSC National Championships. She can also be found in the javelin performance list where she sits seventh at 41.67m (136-8).
Amanda Haven
Completing the trifecta of the decades Blue and Gold high jumpers, Haven qualified for consecutive National Championships in 2013 and 2014 with her personal best of 1.75m (5-8.75), placing her fifth on the podium. Additionally, that mark is fourth on the Javelina performance list, cementing the dominance of Javelina high jumpers over the past decade. She is also ranked 10th on the long jump list at 5.87m (19-3.25)
WOMEN’S THROWERS
Valerie Vrana
Vrana is the school record holder in the shot put, with her toss of 14.60m (47-11) from the 2016 Sam Houston State Last Chance meet. Vrana qualified for three national champions and earned All-Region and All-Academic status in 2015. She placed 13th in both the 2015 and 2016 national meets and won a Lone Star Conference title in the 2015 shot put competition.
Madeline Maltais
Another top scholar-athlete, Maltais was the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee President during 2019 and was originally recruited to TAMUK as a sprinter. However, she now sits second on the Javelina javelin leaderboard with a distance of 46.08m (151-2). Additionally, she picked up the event with no trouble and quickly rose through the ranks, placing second at the conference meet in her first year throwing and in her second season carved a path to the national championship meet where she managed a 14th place finish at 44.03m (144-5).
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