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Jhana Downie, Alesha Lane, Rachel O’Brien and Sahara Tasker compete for the Crimson & White in College Station.
Source: NMSU Athletics
Photo and Story By Emilio Garcia for NMSU: Courtesy
LAS CRUCES, N.M. – Not finished yet. NM State returns to the track with a select group of student-athletes invited to the NCAA West First Round, hosted by Texas A&M at E.B. Cushing Stadium. Split into an East and West region, the NCAA First Rounds bring top athletes together to compete for a spot in the 2025 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, held in Eugene, Ore., at Hayward Field. First round action for the Aggies begins on Thursday, May 29, with quarterfinal action set for Saturday, May 31.
The Starting Line
- NM State continues postseason competition at the NCAA West First Round, hosted by Texas A&M, with a chance to advance to the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Ore. Fans can follow along with the action through links provided at nmstatesports.com.
- Should an Aggie advance beyond this weekend’s meet, it would mark the first NM State student-athlete in the NCAA Outdoor Championships since Kayli Farmer competed in the javelin in 2017.
- The Aggies find themselves among elite competition from the western half of the United States with over 100 schools set to compete including Arizona, Arizona State, Arkansas, Nebraska, Oregon, Texas, TCU, UCLA, Utah, USC and host Texas A&M, among others.
- As a team, the Crimson & White will compete in four events: 200m, 400m, 1500m and the Discus.
Class of CUSA
- Of the student-athletes to make the trek to the NCAA West First Round, each Aggie ranks among the best in Conference USA this season, including:
Rachel O’Brien – 1500m (2nd), 800m (4th)
Alesha Lane – Shot put (3rd), Discus (3rd)
Jhana Downie – 100m (11th), 200m (4th), 400m (11th)
Sahara Tasker – 400m (3rd), 200m (9th)
Aggie Accolades
- Each of these student-athletes currently rank inside the top 10 marks in program history, including:
Jhana Downie – 100m, 200m, 400m, 4×100*, 4×400
Alesha Lane – Discus*, Shot put*
Rachel O’Brien – 800m*, 1500m*
Sahara Tasker – 200m*, 400m*
* – Indicates 2025 season addition
Last Time Out | CUSA Outdoor Track & Field Championships | .25-26.25
- Junior Alesha Lane led the way for the Aggies at the 2025 CUSA Outdoor Championships, posting a pair of bronze-medal finishes in both the shot put and the discus. Her discus mark of 53.12m (174-3″) not only set a personal best for the Casper, Wyo., native but it also represented a new school record – surpassing her previous best school-record mark of 51.87m set earlier this season.
- First year-Aggie and Allen, Texas, native Sahara Tasker was the lone underclassman to earn an individual medal for the Aggies in Murfreesboro, posting a personal best time of 53.70 seconds – the sixth-fastest time in NM State history.
- Senior Jhana Downie helped the Crimson & White take third place in the 4x100m, combining with Marlee Cavitt, Sierra Brewer and Jaylah McDonnell to post a time of 45.08. Individually, Downie recorded a time of 23.84 in the 200m finals. The sprinter from Sunrise, Fla., holds a season best mark of 23.39, with a personal best mark of 22.93 (+2.3 m/s) – a school record.
- Rachel O’Brien closed her first outdoor season with the Aggies in the 1500m, taking first overall in preliminary action while taking fourth with a time of 4:23.40 in finals. O’Brien holds personal bests of 2:06.54 in the 800m (second-fastest in program history), and a time of 4:14.86 in the 1500m (fastest in program history).
For complete coverage of NM State Track & Field, visit NMStateSports.com – the official home of Aggie athletics – and follow us on Twitter (@NMStateXCTF), Instagram (@NMStateXCTF), and like us on Facebook (NMStateTrackXC).
