The 27-year-old Bahamian, who won silver at the 2022 World Indoor Championships, clocked a season-best 7.87 whole holding off the challenge of Sharika Nelvis of the USA (7.93) and Celeste Mucci of Australia, who ran a personal best of 7.95.
Jamaica’s Danielle Williams ran 7.97 for fourth in the keenly contested battle for the minor place.
Meanwhile, 2022 World Indoor 400m champion Jereem Richards was nipped on the line by Noah Williams of the USA in a tight three-way finish.
The Trinidadian led most of the way but tightened up over the last 50m when Williams jumped at the chance to get past him on the inside to take the race by 0.04s.
Both were given the same time of 45.88. However, on closer inspection, Williams clocked 45.876 to Richards’ 45.880.
Vernon Norwood finished third in 45.92.
Jamaican’s Leah Anderson and Janieve Russell finished second and third, respectively, in the Women’s 500m in which Fembke Bol unleashed a new world’s best performance.
The Dutch athlete, who won silver in the 400m hurdles in Oregon in 2022, demonstrated superior speed and strength to pull away from the field and win in 1:05.63 to become the first woman to run faster than 1:06.00 in the event.
It was a new personal best, national record and world record.
Anderson made a late surge to get by Russell in the final stages to establish a new Jamaican national record of 1:08.34.
Russell, the now two-time Commonwealth Games 400m hurdles champion, faded to third in 1:09.18.
The Women’s 60m dash was billed as a clash between World 200m champion Shericka Jackson of Jamaica and World and Olympic 400m hurdles champion Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone.
Somebody forgot about Aleia Hobbs, who just last week ran 6.98 over 60m, tied for the ninth fastest time ever with Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Elaine Thompson-Herah.
But while both Jackson and McLaughlin-Levrone failed to make the final finishing fifth in the respective heats, Hobbs dominated the field to take the final in 7.02 ahead of training partner Mikiah Brisco, who ran a season best 7.10.
Celera Barnes ran 7.21 for third in the American sweep.
Noah Lyles edged Trayvon Brommel by the smallest of margins to win the men’s event in a personal best 6.51 (6.507). Brommel 6.51 (6.509) took the runner-up spot.
Ghana’s Benjamin Azamati clocked 6.62 for third.
Jones, who won the 60m title last year, successfully retained his crown when he topped the event in 6.54s, ahead of University of Iowa’s junior Kalen Walker (6.59s) and Texas Tech teammate Don’dre Swint (6.60s). Jamaican Travis Williams representing University of Southern California, was fifth in 6.64s.
The 21-year-old Jones, who has ambitions to emulate Jamaica’s multiple World and Olympic champion, and the world’s fastest man Usain Bolt, then stomped his class in the 200m. He won in a new Facilities record of 20.23s, just shy of his 20.21 personal best, as he lowered the old record of 20.34s set by Wanya McCoy of University of Florida, on Friday.
Cheickna Traore of Penn State University, clocked a new personal best 20.30s for second, with University of Florida’s Robert Gregory (20.37s) in third. McCoy, who was also in the event, ended seventh in 25.60s.
Meanwhile, Jamaica’s Rivaldo Marshall representing University of Iowa, won the men’s 800m in 1:46.96. The former Calabar standout finished ahead of Villanova’s Sean Dolan (1:47.61) and Finley McLear (1:47.68) of Iowa State.
Former Kingston College stalwart Tarees Rhoden of Clemson University, was fifth in 1:47.79.
After the 17 events scores, Jones’ Texas Tech finished tops with 50.5 points, ahead of Arkansas (41 points) and University of Florida (39 points). Northern Arizona (31 points) and North Carolina (26 points) completed the top five.
Beckford, who won with a height of 2.24m last year while competing for University of South Florida, has enjoyed good form this season, and he once again displayed with the winning leap, which not only equalled the Collegiate leading mark, but also bettered the Facilities Record of 2.26m set by India’s Tejaswin Shankar last year.
However, the winning leap came on his third attempt after he earlier had a failure at 2.21m. The 21-year-old, who is the first Arkansas winner of the event since 1998, also made an attempt at the Olympic qualifying mark of 2.33m.
Caleb Snowden (2.24m) of University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Kansas University’s Devin Loudermilk (2.21m) were the runners-up.
Former St George’s College standout Zayne Palomino of Southern Miss University was joint fifth at 2.18m.
Meanwhile, another in-form Jamaican Lamara Distin of Texas A&M University was beaten in the women’s event, clearing 1.97m.
She was bettered by Arkansas’ Rachel Glenn, who won with 2.00m, equalling Distin’s college record and also erasing the meet record of 1.98m, which was set by Destinee Hooker of Texas in 2009.
Elena Kulichenko (1.91m) of University of Georgia was third. Another Jamaican in the lineup, Roschell Clayton of Villanova, equalled her personal best 1.88m to finish sixth in her first NCAA finals event.
Hodge, who starred at the 2022 Carifta Games in Jamaica where she won the coveted Austin Sealy Award, sped to 22.33 in commanding performance. She won by more than 0.5 seconds over Madison Whyte, who won the silver medal in a time of 23.08.
Elise Cooper was third in 23.42.
"I just came off the curve and just let everything on the track," the Montverde High School junior told MileSplit.
Her school coach Gerald Phiri was equally stunned.
"I don't know when we're going to see athletes like this ever again," he told the track and field website. "I think it's going to be a very long time."
Hodge’s splits were mind-numbing. It took her 6.31s to get to 50m, was at the 100m mark in 11.26 and got to 150 in 17.07.
As a 15-year-old Hodge lit up the track in Jamaica last April when she won the 100m in 11.29 and the 200m in 23.42. In between, she claimed long jump gold and was named most outstanding athlete at the 49th staging of the Games.
The team finished second with 196 points, just half-a-point behind University of Massachusetts Lowell. Fifty of Albany’s points came from the team’s sweep of both 60m and 200m dashes led by sophomore Dominique Clarke.
The former Papine High School athlete won the 60m dash in 7.45, breaking her own record of 7.55 set last year. Her teammates – Adaliz Hunt (7.60) and Rori Lowe (7.64) - completed the sweep for UAlbany.
It was the same in the 200m that Clarke won in a championship record of 23.69. Teammates Jazmen Newberry (23.85) which was also under the previous record of 24.04 with Lowe finishing third equaling the previous standard.
“She and her teammates did something not many teams have done in conference companionships across the US, swept both 60m and 200m,” said Coach Junior Burnett.
“First time in UAlbany track and field history.”
Burnett explained that Clarke is still learning the technical aspects, which makes her performance all that more impressive.
“She did very well yesterday. She won both 60m and 200m, great effort and performance under the situation that she is learning both indoor events,” he said.
“But she stepped up and delivered two big wins for us toward team championship. She’s our silent leader. She’s a very talented athlete but more of an outdoor athlete.
“She is willing do everything for our team. She was confident going in and performed well, defended her 60m title from last year and captured the 200m title.”
Coach Burnett said he expects a lot from her once the season moves outdoors in the spring.
Gordon, the former Wolmer’s Boys star, produced 6.63 to win the men’s 60m ahead of Northeastern’s Ethan Exilhomme (6.69) and South Carolina’s Anthony Greenhow (6.74). Earlier, Gordon made it through to the final as the fastest qualifier with a time of 6.70.
The 20-year-old also took top spot at the Clemson Invitational on January 12 with a personal best 6.60.
Freeman, a senior at Georgia who previously competed at the University of Arkansas, ran 8.24 to win the women’s 60m hurdles ahead of teammate Bella Witt (8.26) and UCONN’s Jailya Ash (8.28).
In the field, Rutgers’ Celine Brown jumped 6.20m to take the women’s long jump ahead pf teammate Alexis Willis (6.02m) and Georgia’s Karsen Phillips (5.47m).
Pinnock’s comments came after he claimed gold for Arkansas Razorbacks with a world lead and national indoor record-equalling 8.40m on Friday’s second day of the NCAA Indoor Championships in Boston.
The 23-year-old, who claimed World Championship silver in Budapest last year, joined James Beckford (1996) and Carey McLeod (2023) at the top of the country’s jump list with the mark.
“I know a lot of people are wondering why I haven’t gone pro as yet, but there is a reason for that and I believe it is going to come at the right time,” Pinnock said shortly after the dazzling performance.
The former Kingston College stalwart, who won the title in 2022 and was fourth last year, surpassed his previous personal best of 8.34m twice after he jumped 8.36m in the second round and then went further in the fourth round, before fouling his final two attempts.
His other distances for rounds one and three were 8.23m and 8.29m, as he won ahead of Florida State’s Jeremiah Davis (8.20m) and Malcolm Clemons (8.11m).
Pinnock’s record jump also moved him joint fifth on the all-time collegiate list with McLeod, and joint second on the UA all-time list, trailing only the school record of (8.43) set by Erick Walder in 1994.
“I prayed about this moment actually, so I came out here with a calm mindset. I know that everyone in the field is competitive, so I just knew I had to execute well and that’s what I did. I equalled the national record and I’m forever grateful for this opportunity to showcase my talent,” Pinnock shared.
Though slightly disappointed with the two fouls, Pinnock took heart from the fact that they were possibly over the 8.40m mark, and that has left him highly motivated as he looks ahead to the remainder of the collegiate season and possibly the Paris Olympic Games.
“I fouled two other jumps that were over 8.40m, but it’s a competition and competitions are all about execution. But I know if those jumps were counted it would have been further, so yeah,” he ended.
The 23-year-old, who claimed World Championship silver in Budapest last year, won on Friday with a personal best and world leading 8.40m, equaling the Jamaican indoor record set by Carey McLeod last year.
Pinnock’s record-equaling jump came in the fourth round of the competition and was his last jump as he subsequently passed on his fifth and sixth round efforts.
His other distances in the first three rounds were 8.23m, 8.36m and 8.29m. His second-round jump was also a world-leading effort.
Florida State Senior Jeremiah Davis produced a season’s best 8.20m for second while Florida Junior Malcolm Clemons was third with 8.11m.
The former Kingston College standout also won NCAA Indoor gold in 2022.
On the track, Bahamian Texas Tech Junior Terrence Jones led all qualifiers to the final of the men’s 60m with a time of 6.56. Jamaican USC Junior Travis Williams (6.60) and Bahamian Florida Sophomore Wanya McCoy (6.60) also made it through to tomorrow’s final.
McCoy also led all qualifiers in the 200m with a facility record 20.34. Jones also made it through with the same time.
Florida Senior Jevaughn Powell and Texas Tech Sophomore Shaemar Uter both made it through to the final of the 400m with times of 46.05 and 46.09, respectively.
The qualifiers for the 800m final were led by Jamaican Iowa Junior Rivaldo Marshall with 1:47.21.
Vincentian Penn State Sophomore Handal Roban (1:47.55) and Jamaican Clemson Senior Tarees Rhoden (1:47.66) also made it through.
