CLEMSON, S.C. – The Clayton State Laker women's track & field team had a few solid meet performances on Saturday, but came away with one team record after setting eight last weekend in Indiana.
Competing in the Tiger Invitational, hosted by Clemson, Clayton State's 4x400-meter relay team improved its indoor record for the third time this season running 4:04.77 minutes. The team of
Keisha Etienne,
Masiah Hutchinson,
Kara Stokes and Adriane Turner wound up placing fourth overall.
Etienne had another strong showing in the 400-meter dash, running 58.03 for a fourth-place finish. She just missed an NCAA Division II provisional time by less than 0.3 seconds. Hutchinson ran the fastest indoor 800-meter run in two seasons for the Lakers, running 2:27.06 while placing 12th overall.
Senior
Jon Taylor, who hit a NCAA Division II provisional mark last weekend in the triple jump, did not improve her standing. She jumped 36-10½ feet to finish third in the triple jump on Saturday and was 10th overall in the 60-meter dash, running 8.09 seconds.
Also earning a Top 10 finish was sophomore
Chelsea Ellis, who finished seventh in the mile running 5:26.00. Late in the meet, Ellis ran her first collegiate 3,000-meter run, finishing with a time of 11:24.51 — the fastest for Clayton State in three seasons.
"We continued to make some gains, but our inexperience showed today," said Clayton State head coach
Mike Mead. "I made one scheduling error that may have cost
Keisha Etienne a good shot at an NCAA provisional time, and she ran well despite the glitch. I was pleased with the progress of
Masiah Hutchinson who ran a good 800-meter run and a sub-60 split on the 4x400-meter relay.
"As a team, we have to do a better job with details and more consistent training."
Mead will seek one more indoor meet for Taylor and Etienne in the hopes to hit fast enough Division II provisional marks to make next month's NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field Championships in Houston.
Meantime, the rest of the team will be gearing up for their outdoor opener March 7 at the Columbus State Relays in Smiths Station, Ala.
