Rowan men’s track and field team is officially ranked No. 1 in this week’s U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) poll after a successful weekend at the Temple Invitational. 

The team continued its early success last weekend with multiple personal records being broken as they prepare for some better competition in the near future.

For starters, the 4×100 meter relay team of senior John Owens, junior Jah’mere Beasley, sophomore Nana Agyemang and freshman Robert McKinney clocked in at 41.16, which now puts them at No. 1 in Division III. 

Owens also took first place in the 400-meter hurdles with a personal-best of 54.15, while Agyemang finished second in the 100 meters, with a time of 10.59, and first in the 200 meters, with a time of 21.53, both earning him top-ten ranks in Division III. 

“I’m just trying to move on day by day,” Agyemang said. “ I don’t want to get too high on my highs or get too low on my lows… I’m not gonna discredit what I did but, essentially, it’s a new week so I just like to think about new blessings and new opportunities each week.”

Agyemang was quick to brush off the early-season success in hopes for bigger success, not only for him but also for his team. 

“Our goal is to win a team National Title,” Agyemang said. “We’ve won the individual national championships but our ultimate goal is to win the team title. That means everybody on the team did their part and that’s what we really want.”

As for himself, Agyemang does not plan on stepping off the gas but instead is looking to do more as the season progresses.

“Week by week,” Agyemang said. “I won’t stress over it if I don’t move up this week or next week. It’s all about progress… as long as I’m taking the steps forward.”

Head Coach Dustin Dimit also has high exceptions when it comes to not only Agyemang but the whole team.

“For Nana we just want to see him get faster with top-end speed,” Coach Dimit said. “We just want people to get faster as the season goes on, especially at these busy meets.”

This past weekend was just one of the times the team has gone up against bigger Division I schools, and Agyemang and Coach Dimit shed some light on what that’s like to be a Division III program.

“They may not know who we are, but they know we’re fast enough to be there,” Coach Dimit said. “They know we’re a good team and we can add to the meet.”

“We love it, being D3 and especially being from Jersey,” Agyemang added. “I feel like being from Jersey gives you a little edge to yourself. We like to show what we’re really capable of doing… Just showing everybody that we can compete with DI and DII schools.”

The team will be facing Division I schools this weekend as they head down South to the Auburn Invitational in hopes to show what they are capable of. 

“We know that we’re right up there with them,” Agyemang said, “but most teams probably see Rowan and think ‘oh they’re DIII’ and they don’t really care about us but then when we’re neck and neck with them in an event they start questioning it so it’s fun to see.”

The Auburn Invitational will kick off on Friday, April 15, at 2 p.m. and will conclude on Saturday, April 16. 

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