With an older brother skilled in track and field, Liberty redshirt senior heptathlete Patasha Bryan had a clear path into the sport.
Bryan was introduced to track and field at 13 following her move from Jamaica to the United States.
“My first day at school, this guy came up to me and would later become my coach all throughout middle school and high school,” Bryan said. “He asked me if I was Anthony’s sister. I said yes, and he said, ‘you are going to come out for track and field.’”
Despite eventually finding success across multiple events, Bryan initially competed in just one at South Walton High School.
“I was just doing the 800 for a while,” Bryan said. “Summer track came around, and my coach only specializes in the multis during summer track, and so he was like, you should try this event …I enjoyed it because I like doing more things than just one.”
Bryan quickly discovered her versatility after transitioning to multi-events, excelling across several disciplines and setting multiple school records.
She ran the 300-meter hurdles in 44.35 seconds, jumped 17 feet, 11.5 inches in the long jump, reached five feet, 7.75 inches in the high jump, threw 118 feet in the javelin throw and posted a time of 2:11.31 in the 800-meter run.
After success in high school, Bryan took her skills to the collegiate level and attended Liberty University following her brother’s transfer into the program.
“First my brother came here, and it was really nice having a familiar face going into such a big transition,” Bryan said. “I knew I wanted to go somewhere where I could grow athletically but also spiritually.”
After many intriguing conversations with Coach Lance Bingham, Bryan felt confident Liberty was the right fit.
“He really put an emphasis on wanting to know what we are going to be doing in our lives 10 years from now,” Bryan said. “To serve the Lord, and I thought that was really different … that really drew me here.”
Bryan explained she has a simple routine to prepare for competition.
“I try to stay in the right headspace,” Bryan said. “I trust my training, I trust my coaches and I spend a lot of time praying, knowing that I want to use the gifts the Lord has blessed me with to honor him … I really have the support of my family. I talk to them a lot and I listen to a lot of music.”
Bryan graduated in May 2025 and is currently in a graduate certificate program. She continues to compete as a redshirt senior in the current season.
During her most recent meet, she broke Liberty University’s 4×400 relay record. Along with competing in the multis, she walked away as the Conference USA Outdoor Pentathlon Champion.
“I just really learned that I could do anything that I put my mind to,” Bryan said. “That is something that I felt like really followed me through my collegiate years, just to work hard and be disciplined in everything I do.”
Bryan and her brother, Anthony, ran together for portions of high school and college.
“We are always really competitive,” Bryan said. “I feel like I am stronger in the distance events, and he is not, so that’s where we always competed.”
Despite the sibling competition, Bryan said her brother is also her biggest support.
“It was just nice having him here being supportive and being my biggest cheerleader,” Bryan said.
Bryan is focused on her future as she pushes to excel academically and athletically, using the knowledge she gained as an athlete.
“I hope to carry the things I have learned through track into the future,” Bryan said. “That hard work can get you anything you want in life.”
Lewis is a sports reporter for the Liberty Champion.