BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Not wasting any time, Clayton State women's track & field broke a pair of program records and delivered multiple impressive performances as they opened the 2019-20 indoor season at the BSC Indoor Icebreaker on Friday, December 6.
 
A transfer from Division II Lee, sophomore Kayla Williams (Decatur, Ga.) came in with a personal best in the 60-meters that equaled the existing program record. It would take exactly one event for her to break a record set six times by standout senior Nia Elmore (Hinesville, Ga.).
 
After notching a mark of 7.93 in the preliminaries to qualify for the semis, Williams would blaze a time of 7.68 to break Elmore's record of 7.70, coming within one one-hundredth of an NCAA Provisional mark in the process. The latter record was last set on January 20, 2019 at the Emory CrossPlex Invitational. Williams would then go on to post a time of 7.74 in the finals to place an impressive 6-of-69 in the event.
 
It would not be her only performance that surpassed a program record, however, as she covered the 200-meters in 25.47 to finish 10-of-77. This beat another Elmore mark, this one 25.61 from November 30 at the BSC Panther Indoor Icebreaker. Unlike her 60-meter performance, this one would not stay in the Laker record book.
 
That honor would go to senior Jasmine Radford (Lawrenceville, Ga.) who finished ahead of her with a record-shattering time of 25.39, beating the previous mark by an impressive 0.22. That accomplishment marks the seventh time that she has broken a program record and now holds both the indoor and outdoor 200-meter marks.
 
While not record setting, junior Na'ilah Allen (McDonough, Ga.) would produce a pair of outings that stood out, even against the bright light of her teammates accomplishments. She would finish 7-of-20 in the mile (5:24.56) and 8-of-27 in the 800-meters (2:23.33), blowing away her personal bests in both events. She would top the 800-meter mark by nearly six seconds and the mile PR by more than 25 seconds.
 
Williams, along with junior Chaviya Jackson (Albany, Ga.) and freshmen Ny'Asia Green (Augusta, Ga.) and Caitlyn Sanders (Conyers, Ga.) would add a 10-of-24 performance in the 4x400-meters. That group would post a time of 4:11.06 as they trailed six Division I teams and beat six others from that level.
 
Additionally, Jackson would produce a strong individual outing as she would go on to place 22-of-53 (1:00.72) in the 400 meters. Freshman Shania Riles (Columbus, Ga.) would then round out the top performers with a 16-of-42 finish in the shotput (11.55m).
 
After just opening the new season, the Lakers will now be on hiatus until January 19 when the season resumes in Birmingham. That day will see Clayton State compete at the Emory CrossPlex Showdown for a special Sunday meet with a start time of 9:30 a.m. (EDT).
 
CLAYTON STATE WOMEN'S COMPETITORS (12)
Na'ilah Allen – Mile (7-of-20, 5:24.56), 800-meters (8-of-27, 2:23.33)
Shockera Betty – 60-meters (50-of-69, 8.29), Triple Jump (14-of-23, 10.59m)
Dalania Clardy – Long Jump (31-of-45, 4.73m), Triple Jump (18-of-23, 9.45m)
Jayda Daniels – 60-meters (38-of-69, 8.12), 200-meters (40-of-77, 26.87)
Stephanie Escobar – Mile (19-of-20, 5:54.67), 3,000-meters (20-of-27, 11:31.25)
Kimberly Fernandez – Hammer (22-of-28, 11.24m), Shotput (28-of-42, 10.23m)
Ny'Asia Green – Long Jump (36-of-45, 4.69m), 400-meters (30-of-53, 1:02.40), 4x400-meters (10-of-24, 4:11.06)
Chaviya Jackson – 400-meters (22-of-53, 1:00.72), 4x400-meters (10-of-24, 4:11.06)
Jasmine Radford – 200-meters (%9-of-77, 25.39)
Shania Riles – Hammer (27-of-28, ND), Shotput (16-of-42, 11.55m)
Caitlyn Sanders – 400-meters (35-of-53, 1:03.22), 4x400-meters (10-of-24, 4:11.06)
Kayla Williams – 60-meters (6-of-69, 7.74 – %7.68 - Semis), 200-meters (^10-of-77, 25.47), 4x400-meters (10-of-24, 4:11.06)
%Indicates Program Record
^Indicates Broke Previous Program Record (Second to Radford)