👟 Grant Downes Wins Heptathlon at DeLoss Dodds Invitational

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas track & field senior Grant Downes won the heptathlon title at the DeLoss Dodds Invitational in Manhattan, Kansas this weekend, scoring a personal best 4,916 points.

Downes, of Kansas City, Missouri, set personal bests in three of the seven events over the two-day heptathlon, resulting in his personal best performance of 4,916 points. He bettered is score of 4,900 points, set at the 2021 Big 12 Indoor Championship.

Downes opened his weekend in the heptathlon 60 meters, where he ran a personal best 7.15, placing second. Downes would also win the heptathlon high jump, clearing 1.84m (6-0.5 ft.) to finish day one with 2,808 points, which led the field.

On Saturday, Downes picked up where he left off, running a personal best 8.39 in the heptathlon 60-meter hurdles to score 886 points. Downes would then win the heptathlon pole vault by clearing 4.10m (13-5.25 ft.).

Downes then capped of his heptathlon in the 1,000 meters, finishing in 3:09.16 to bring his final score to 4,916 points.

On Friday, sophomore Alice Boasso and freshman Lauren Heck competed in their first pentathlon of the season, with Boasso finishing second overall, scoring 3,375 points and Heck finishing fourth with 3,056 points.

Boasso opened the pentathlon in the 60-meter hurdles on Friday, where she crossed the line in 9.27, closely followed by Heck in 9.30. Boasso would then set a personal best in the high jump, clearing 1.55m (5-1 ft.) and would go on to win the pentathlon 800 meters in 2:26.07.

The Jayhawks will be back in action at their final home meet of the indoor season at the Jayhawk Classic at Anschutz Sports Pavilion in Lawrence, Kansas on January 28.