By Jim Walker

jim.walker@irontontribune.com

RIO GRANDE — They may be rookies, but they don’t run like rookies.

Two University of Rio Grande RedStorm track runners were part of two school records that were set last Friday in the Youngstown State University Collegiate Invitational at the Watson and Tressell Training Site presented by Southwoods Health.

The two freshmen are Laura Hamm and Kylie Montgomery, both 2024 graduates of Coal Grove Dawson-Bryant High School.

Hamm and Montgomery were members of the 2024 Division 3 state championship 4×400 meter relay team.

This time at the indoor meet, Hamm set a new school record in the 800 meters with a time of 2:20.11 in her first try ever in the event at the college level and broke the old record of 2:20.64 set by Anne Marie Hynes.

She finished sixth in the meet.

The other record was in the 4×400 relay as Montgomery and Hamm were joined by seniors Kendra Grooms and Jayden Roach to place third in the meet with a time of 4:04.68 which broke the school record by nearly five full seconds.

Montgomery also set her own personal-best record in the 200-meter ash with a time of 26.94 as she finished 13th overall.

For her performance, Hamm was named the River States Conference women’s indoor track Athlete of the Week on Monday.

Hamm’s time is the ninth-best time in the NAIA this season.