AUSTIN, Texas—They aren't nicknamed the Speed Demons for nothing.

A trio of personal bests by the Northwestern State sprinters highlight strong performances on the second day of the Texas Relays.

The day started well as the men's 4x100 relay team qualified for Saturday's final.

NSU's quartet of Zachaeus Beard, Simon Wulff, Dylan Swain and Cyrus Jacobs captured the last qualifying spot with a time of 39.67, finishing just .007 seconds ahead of Texas State for the spot.

"For the men's 4x100 to make the finals and beat out a ton of power 5 schools is awesome," Heimerman said. "Simon and Zach to run well with where they are in there training after missing so many days is encouraging for the rest of the season."

The day was just getting started for the Demons and Lady Demons, especially for the sprinters.

Vanessa Balde ran a 13.75 in the women's 100-meter hurdles, which both tied a personal best and tied herself for the best mark in the Southland Conference in this outdoor season.

In the men's 100-meter dash, Wulff ran a blistering 10.33 for ninth place out 141 finishers in a stacked field. Not only was that time a personal best, but it was the best time by a Demon this outdoor season and the second-best time in the SLC this season.

Beard ran it in 10.35, which is his best mark as a Demon, and Swain ran a personal-best 10.53.

"I'm very happy with the performances today," head coach Mike Heimerman said. "It was very hot and the meet ran behind schedule, so it threw off the warmup times and kept some of them out in the sun too much. But everyone handled it pretty well.

"I'm very proud of everyone for the way they stepped up on a very big stage."

In the women's 100-meters in Austin, Sileena Farrell ran a 12.21 in her first race in the event.

NSU's foursome of Balde, Sian Weller, Maygan Shaw and Sanaria Butler posted a 3:40.11 in the women's 4x400 relay, which ranks 10^th in program history.

On the men's side, the group of Galen Loyd, Destine-Unique Scott, Desmond Duncan and Mikkel Johansson posted a 3:15.02.

The sprinters didn't have all the fun in Austin, though. Djimon Gumbs continued his outstanding outdoor season with a fourth-place finish in the discus with an impressive toss of 200-10.

"The throwers had a phenomenal day as well," Heimerman said. "For DJ to place fourth in a loaded discus field was great."

Tarajh Hudson posted a 162-0 in the section B in the men's discus to begin NSU's day.

The performers at the Bobcat Invitational were as hot as the weather, as three earned personal bests, all of which rank in the top five in the conference in the events.

Competing in both meets, Shaw had an impressive day in both Austin and San Marcos, Texas. At the Bobcat Invitational, Shaw dominated the women's 200-meters, running a 23.55, which is a personal best and the top time in SLC in the outdoor this season.

Victoria Byrd ran a 25.03 in the women's 200-meters as well.

In the men's 200-meters, both Jacobs and Johansson earned personal bests. Jacobs finished 11^th in a stacked field, running a 21.09, which is not only a personal best, but second in the SLC this season.

If that wasn't enough, Johansson cracked the top five in the conference. Johansson, a fellow freshman, ran a 21.39, which is a personal best and fifth in the SLC this outdoor season.

Austin Simoneaux had a great run in the event as well, posting a time of 21.67.

The track & field teams conclude the meets at the Texas Relays and Bobcat Invitational on Saturday.