College athletes hit the track

Bahamian collegiate athletes have been performing at a high level this indoor track and field season, and they picked up where they left off as action in February got underway with various meets in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) this past weekend.

Premier athlete Steven Gardiner was also in action, competing in his first-ever indoor 200 meters (m) at the East Coast Invitational in Virginia Beach, Virginia, on Saturday, and looked impressive doing so.

Oral Roberts University (ORU) Golden Eagles’ athlete Sasha Wells continued her stellar performance this season by lowering her own school record in the 60m hurdles, clocking 8.21 seconds at the Herm Wilson Invitational at the Heskett Center in Wichita, Kansas, on Friday. Her previous school record was 8.30 seconds – a time she ran earlier in the preliminaries. In addition, the talented hurdler now sports the 15th fastest time in that event in NCAA Division I athletics this season.

Finishing behind Wells was Claudia Rojo who ran unattached, finishing the race in 8.75 seconds. Third place was secured by Fort Hays State University Tigers’ Mattie Rossie. She also clocked 8.75 seconds but lost out in a photo finish.

At this same venue, weekend before last, Wells did not finish the 60m hurdles after hitting a hurdle.

The Golden Eagles will head to Topeka, Kansas, this coming weekend to compete in the DI/JUCO Triangles, hosted by Washburn University at their indoor athletic facility.

Returning to her old stomping grounds at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, Arkansas, was Washington State University (WSU) Cougars’ sophomore Charisma Taylor. Although she finished second in the 60m hurdles final, she tied her personal best of 8.19 seconds in the preliminary round at the Arkansas Qualifier. With that time, she also tied her school record that she produced last year.

Taylor’s time in the final was 8.24 seconds, good enough for second place on Friday. Winning that race with a time of 8.20 seconds was Arkansas Razorbacks’ Daszay Freeman. Finishing third with a time of 8.24 seconds was the Razorbacks’ Yoveinny Mota. Taylor has the 12th fastest time in that event in NCAA Division I athletics this season with her school record of 8.19 seconds.

Taylor also completed the triple jump and finished second. She leapt 13.30m (43’ 7-3/4”), which has her ranked as the number nine jumper in NCAA Division I athletics this season. Kansas State University Wildcats’ Anigbata Chinonyelum leapt a personal best and meet record of 13.61m (44’ 8”) to win that event. The Wildcats’ Rhianna Phipps was third with a jump of 13.11m (43’ 0-1/4”).

Taylor will be back in action next Friday, February 12, as the Cougars head to Seattle, Washington, to compete in the University of Washington Invitational at the Dempsey Indoor Track on Friday and Saturday.

As for Bahamian elite runner Gardiner, he clocked 20.71 seconds in his first-ever indoor 200m. The 400m World Champion ran a comfortable race, hitting his stride in the final 50 meters to cross the finish line first. With that time, he has the seventh-fastest mark in the world this season. It was his second race of the season, having run the 300m back in January in Birmingham, Alabama. He ran 32.70 seconds to win that race.

Finishing behind him in second place on Saturday was Joseph Manu with a time of 21.24 seconds. Finishing in third was Chidi Okezie in 21.36 seconds.

In the men’s high jump at the Hoosier Hills Invitational at Gladstein Fieldhouse in Bloomington, Indiana, on Saturday, Bahamian Jyles Etienne won with a season’s best clearance of 2.08m (6’ 10”). The senior has a personal best height of 2.23m indoors (7’ 3-3/4”). Etienne’s teammate Grayson Rolen was second with a clearance of 2.04m (6’ 8-1/4”), and George Ghafari, representing the Wisconsin Badgers, finished third with a clearance of 1.95m (6’ 4-3/4”).

At the same meet over the weekend, Ohio State sophomore Devine Parker finished eighth in the final of the women’s 60m in 7.93 seconds after running 7.56 seconds in the heats.

Etienne and the Indiana Hoosiers will head on the road to take part in the Hawkeye B1G Invitational in Iowa City, Iowa, this coming weekend. Parker and the Ohio State Buckeyes will take part in that same meet.

Megan Moss was second in the 400m in a season’s best time of 52.99 seconds at the South Carolina Invitational at the South Carolina University Indoor Track and Field Complex in Columbia, South Carolina, this past weekend. Talitha Diggs, of Florida, won in a facility record of 52.34 seconds. Moss is at number 15 in the NCAA. Also, Moss and the University of Kentucky Wildcats 4x400m relay team powered their way to the fifth-fastest time in NCAA Division I in that event this season as they clocked 3:32.41. Moss ran the first leg on the team that included Abby Steiner, Masai Russell and Dajour Miles.

Finishing second behind them was the University of Florida Gators in which Bahamian Doneisha Anderson anchored them to a 3:35.91 finish. It was the 11th fastest time in NCAA Division I this season. The team included Taylor Manson, Talitha Diggs, Sterling Lester and Anderson.

Third place was secured by the Clemson University Tigers with a time of 3:38.40.

The Wildcats head to Nashville, Tennessee, to run at the Vanderbilt University Music City Challenge this coming weekend. The Gators’ next meet will also be this weekend as they head to Fayetteville, Arkansas, to take part in the University of Arkansas’ Tyson Invitational.

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