Life U wins conference as Demeritte, Sands earn conference honors

It was a historic moment for Life University Running Eagles Interim Head Coach Dominic Demeritte, a Bahamian, and his women’s track and field team as they won the Mid-South Conference (MSC) Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Championship for the first time in program history this past weekend. The championships took place at the James H. Taylor II Stadium in Williamsburg, Kentucky, and the resilient Eagles stormed back for victory after coming into the final day of competition in third position.

The Running Eagles, who compete at the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Division I level, finished the two-day meet with 217 points. The Lindsey Wilson College Blue Raiders finished second overall with 160.50 points and the host, the University of the Cumberlands Phoenix, finished third with 144 points.

Demeritte walked away with the MSC Coach of the Year Award. For the second time in her collegiate career, Bahamian Bria Sands earned the MSC Athlete of the Year Award.

Overall, the Running Eagles finished with nine titles. Sands, the younger sister of national record holder in the men’s triple jump, “Superman” Leevan Sands, swept the jumping events – the long, triple and high jumps. She already has the NAIA ‘A’ standards in all three of those events.

In the long jump, the Life University senior’s first jump of 5.60 meters (m) – 18’ 4-1/2” was her best jump. It was enough to finish ahead of second-place finisher Emilija Kusic who competes for the Blue Raiders. Sands has the third-best jump in the NAIA with a leap of 5.96m (19’ 6-3/4”). Kusic posted a jump of 5.51m (18’ 1”) to secure the silver medal. Kusic’s teammate, Ty’Nasia Walker, leapt 5.32m (17’ 5-1/2”) to finish third overall.

Sands only needed to jump two times in the triple jump final, passing on her other four attempts. She recorded the winning jump of 12.05m (39’ 6-1/2”) on her second and final attempt in the pit. The Bahamian was the only jumper to surpass 12 meters (39’ 4-1/2”) that day. In the grand scheme of things, she is ranked second nationally in the NAIA with a jump of 12.41m (40’ 8-3/4”).

Campbellsville University Tigers Hayley Payton finished second when she recorded a leap of 11.67m (38’ 3-1/2”). Wining the bronze medal again was Walker who posted a jump of 11.53m (37’ 10”).

The Bahamian got her third gold medal in the high jump when she was able to clear 1.69m (5’ 6-1/2”). She had a rough start at her starting height of 1.49m (4’ 10-1/2”), knocking the bar down on her first two attempts, but she went over the bar on her third and final attempt.

Sands got tough competition from Georgetown College Tigers’ Emma Bianchi as she was able to clear 1.64m (5’ 4-1/2”) for second. She did not have any problems clearing that height or the heights before it but failed on her attempts at 1.69m.

Sands and Bianchi are tied nationally for second place in NAIA rankings with a height of 1.70m (5’ 7”).

Bianchi’s teammate Jalynn Landversicht leapt her way to the bronze medal after clearing 1.59m (5’ 2-1/2”).

Other than in the jumps, Demeritte’s team produced gold medal finishes in the 100m, 200m, 100m hurdles, 400m, 10,000m, 4x400m relay and the discus throw events. His team left with 10 All-Conference Team honors.

Demeritte will look to keep his team focused as they head to the North Florida Invite in Jacksonville, Florida, as a last chance qualifier, tomorrow and Friday. The team is tuning up for the NAIA National Championships, set for May 26-28 at the Mickey Miller Blackwell Stadium in Gulf Shores, Alabama.

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