Several Caribbean athletes were on show as the NCAA Indoor Track & Field season continued at the Kansas State Winter Invitational on December 11.
Bahamian Kyle Alcine, competing for Kansas State, won the high jump with a clearance of 2.05m.
Alcine, the silver medallist at the NACAC Under 23 Championships in Costa Rica earlier this year, finished ahead of Kansas State teammate Kamyren Garrett who also cleared 2.05 metres and Kaleb Clark of William Carey jumped 1.95 for third.
Guyana’s Chantoba Bright, also representing Kansas State, was also a winner at the meet soaring out to 13.31 metres to win the triple jump.
Bright, who won a silver medal in the same event at the recently concluded Pan Am Junior Championships in Colombia, finished ahead of Allanah Lee of Oklahoma who jumped out to 12.28m and Nevagant Jones of William Carey who was third with 11.77m.
Meanwhile, Jamaica’s Fredricka McKenzie, competing for William Carey University, was second in the Women’s 60 metres in 7.52.
McKenzie is a former Edwin Allen High School student who narrowly missed out on an individual medal at Jamaica’s Boys and Girls High School Track & Field Championships or “Champs” on two separate occasions. She was fourth in the Girls Class One 200m in 2018 and a year later, fourth in the Girls Class One 100m.
The race was won by Wurrie Njadoe of Kansas State in 7.45 while her teammate Velecia Williams was third in 7.54.
Williams is a former Hydel High School student, who won silver medals in both the long and triple jump at the 2018 CARIFTA Games in The Bahamas.
Another Jamaican representing Kansas State, Taishia Pryce, finished fourth in 7.60.
Pryce, a former student at the St. Andrew Technical High School, also ran 39.35 to finish second in the Women’s 300m that Njadoe won in 38.42, a new meet record.
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Texas's Julien Alfred (10.83) secures spot in 100m field at NCAA Championships; Arkansas's Ackera Nugent (12.69), Texas Tech's Roswell (12.77) advance in the sprint hurdles
Texas’s Julien Alfred will have a chance to defend her NCAA Outdoor 100m title after securing her spot in the field on the final day of the NCAA West Regionals in Sacramento on Saturday.
The 21-year-old St. Lucian, who won the NCAA Indoor 60m and 200m double earlier this season, sped to a meet record and collegiate leading time of 10.83 to comfortably be the fastest qualifier to the Championships set for June 7-10 on her home track at the University of Texas's Mike A. Myers stadium.
Her Jamaican teammate, Kevona Davis, also made it through the preliminaries with an 11.06 effort.
The Texas duo also made it through in the 200m with Davis running a season’s best 22.33 and Alfred running 22.45.
Arkansas’s Ackera Nugent, a two-time NCAA Indoor Champion, ran 12.69, a new meet record to advance fastest in the sprint hurdles. Her countrywoman, Texas Tech’s Demisha Roswell, also made it through with a season’s best 12.77.
Arkansas’s Nickisha Price and Joanne Reid both advanced in the one-lap event with personal best times of 50.49 and 51.49, respectively.
In the field, defending NCAA high jump champion, Lamara Distin of Texas A&M, easily cleared 1.85m to secure her opportunity to defend her title. Texas’s Ackelia Smith, world leader in the long jump, also booked her spot in the field for the triple jump with 13.96m.
Meanwhile, at the East Regionals in Jacksonville, Ohio State’s Yanique Dayle and Kentucky’s Anthaya Charlton made it through in the 100m.
Dayle, the Jamaican Senior, produced a big personal best 11.05 while Charlton, the Bahamian Freshman, produced 11.08 (2.3 m/s) to advance.
Dayle also advanced in the 200m with a season’s best 22.58 while LSU’s Brianna Lyston also made it through with 22.92.
In the field, Georgia’s Vincentian Junior, Mikeisha Welcome, jumped 13.50m to make it through in the triple jump.
Ackeem Blake runs 9.89 pb to win 100m at USATF LA Grand Prix; Sean Bailey (44.43) and Marileidy Paulino (48.98) also run lifetime bests to secure 400m wins
Jamaicans Sean Bailey, Ackeem Blake and the Dominican Republic’s Marileidy Paulino all achieved lifetime bests to come out on top in their respective events on day two of the 2023 USATF LA Grand Prix at the UCLA Drake Stadium in California on Saturday.
The 25-year-old Bailey, younger brother of Olympic and World Champion Veronica Campbell-Brown, produced a career-best 44.43 to chase down Grenadian Olympic and World Champion, Kirani James, who had about a five-meter lead over Bailey heading into the final 100m of the race.
James’s time in second was a season’s best 44.50 while Quincy Hall was third in 45.09.
Paulino, the Olympic and World Championship silver medallist, produced a new national record and world leading 48.98 to win ahead of Salwa Eid Nasser (50.27) and Lynna Irby Jackson (50.38).
Puerto Rican defending Olympic Champion Jasmine Camacho-Quinn ran a world leading 12.31 to win the 100m hurdles ahead of Americans Keni Harrison (12.35) and Tia Jones (12.50).
Trinidadian World Indoor 400m Champion and Commonwealth Games 200m Champion, Jereem Richards, ran a season’s best 20.08 for second in the 200m behind Terrance Laird (20.06). Elijah Morrow was third in 20.22.
Moving to the 100m, Ackeem Blake produced a big personal best 9.89 to get a win over Americans Cravont Charleston (9.91) and Christian Coleman (9.91).
American Morolake Akinosun capitalized on the absence of both Sha’Carri Richardson and Marie- Josee Ta Lou from the Women’s equivalent to win in 10.97 ahead of countrywoman Melissa Jefferson (11.07) and Jamaican Junior Alana Reid (11.08).
In the field, 2019 World Championships silver medallist, Danniel Thomas-Dodd, produced a new personal best and national record 19.77m for third in the Women’s shot put. The event was won by the USA’s Maggie Ewen in a personal best and world leading 20.45m ahead of her teammate, Chase Ealy (19.98m).
Two-time World Champion Anderson Peters, won the javelin in 83.16m ahead of Curtis Thompson (75.27m) and Caspers Williamson (75.02m)
Jamaica to open campaign against Canada on Friday, May 26 after rain forces Group A postponements Wednesday
Following Wednesday night's washout of the Group A matches in the final round of the Concacaf Women U20 Championships qualifiers, Jamaica will now play their opening match against Canada on May 26.
They will then play the USA on May 28 with their final group match against Panama set for May 30.
Adverse weather conditions resulted in water-logged fields in the Dominican Republic on Wednesday night causing the games to be postponed.
The other Group A fixture between the United States and Panama was also called off.
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