Tennessee sophomore JL Van Rensburg won the shot put event on April 4 at the 2026 Pepsi Florida Relays, achieving a new outdoor personal best and finishing first overall as the University of Tennessee concluded its participation in Gainesville, Florida. Van Rensburg, who is from South Africa, recorded his top mark in the sixth round with a throw of 19.76 meters (64-10), securing victory in the meet’s invitational section.
The performance elevated Van Rensburg to second place on Tennessee’s all-time outdoor shot put list and currently places him third among NCAA competitors for the 2026 outdoor season. His achievement was one of five event titles secured by Tennessee during the two-day competition.
In relay events on Saturday, Tennessee teams earned runner-up finishes. The women’s 4×100-meter relay team—composed of Lauren Jarrett, Dana Wilson, Avia Jones, and Cydney Wright—finished second with a time of 43.15 seconds. This result ranks fourth in Lady Vol history and places them within the program’s all-time top-10 list.
The women’s 4×400-meter relay invitational saw Wright joined by Javonya Valcourt, Ka’Myya Haywood, and Esther Joseph to form what is now recognized as the second-fastest quartet in school history with a time of 3:25.69. Their performance finished second at the meet and stands third on this season’s NCAA outdoor list.
Redshirt freshman Avia Jones also delivered a notable individual performance by placing third in the women’s 100-meter dash with a personal best time of 11.28 seconds—just under one-tenth of a second shy of setting a new program freshman record.
Looking ahead, both Tennessee Volunteers and Lady Volunteers are scheduled to return home for their annual meet at Tom Black Track next week. The 2026 Tennessee Invite will take place Friday and Saturday, April 10-11.
