Cotton takes fifth place in 100 meters at USTA Championships

DES MOINES, Iowa — On the final day of the USATF Outdoor Track & Field Championships, Kenzo Cotton closed out his career at Arkansas in the USATF 200-meter final alongside former teammate and Arkansas alum, Marqueze Washington.

Cotton, a senior NCAA All-American, and Academic All-American advanced to the finals in the 200-meters, finishing third in his heat running 20.70. Cotton’s time was the ninth-fastest in the semifinal.

Pro Hog Marqueze Washington joined Cotton in the final with his fourth-place finish in the first heat running 20.47 to advance.

In the final, Cotton turned in a solid performance running 20.82 to snag a fifth-place finish in the event. Washington took seventh-place after pulling up with an injury during the final.

“I felt like it was a pretty good race,” said Cotton. ” I think I ran my curve really well, that’s what me and coach [Doug] Case have been talking about, making sure I execute that curve well. Overall I’m happy with my place and happy with my finish and how I executed my race.”

Cotton concludes his career after being a mainstay on the relays and sprint events for the past four seasons.

“I’m really happy with how my career went,” said Cotton. “I never expected to run the times I’m running, and as early as I did. I’ve really enjoyed my time here at Arkansas and the teammates that I’ve trained with and the friends that I’ve made.”

Also competing in Sunday’s finals was Razorback alum Stanley Kebenei who had a great day on the track as well. Kebenei finished fourth in the 3,000-meter steeplechase running 8:28.39, a season-best time.