Columbia, Mo. ? Kansas University swimmer Morgan Sharp broke the KU record in the 500 freestyle as the Jayhawks competed in the first day of the Mizzou Invitational on Thursday.

Sharp’s time of 4:48.01 — also a personal-best — broke former Jayhawk Gina Gnatzig’s record of 4:48.77, which was set in 2006.

“It doesn’t happen too often to have a record fall this early in the season, but Morgan just did an awesome job,” Kansas coach Clark Campbell said.

Five other KU swimmers — Sarah Hettenbach, Abigail Anderson, Caroline Patterson, Alison Moffitt and Svetlana Golovchun — also set career best times.

The Jayhawks scored 120 points on Thursday and placed in the top five in both relay events. The Mizzou Invitational continues today at 10 a.m. and will conclude on Saturday.