Men's Track & Field | February 19, 2024
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Clayton State University track & field teams competed in the inaugural Peach Belt Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships on Monday inside the Alachua County Sports and Events Center. The Lakers gathered 18 All-Conference performances, a pair of conference champions, and a school record broken at the Championships.
Both the men's and women's team finished in fourth place in the Championships. The women's team scored 40 points while the men's team notched 52 points. Embry-Riddle won the Championship on both the men's and women's side while Flagler placed second on the men's side and Central State finished second on the women's side.
A WORD FROM COACH BROWN
"This is an amazing team, and I am very proud of all their efforts and dedication," said head coach Chris Brown, Oly. "With commitment and determination, we've made in through the storm. This shows that we are heading in the right direction. We will be back bigger and stronger next year. The future looks great for Clayton State Athletics! Looking forward to the outdoors season! GO LAKERS!!!"
MEN'S SIDE
The Lakers kicked off action on the track in the preliminary rounds of the 60m dash where both
Kelvin Oppong and
Christopher Hart qualified for the finals. In the finals, Oppong finished fourth with a time of 7.08 while Hart finished in sixth with a time of 7.09 seconds. In the 60m hurdles,
Ishmeal Neblett qualified for the finals where he crossed the finish line in seventh with a time of 9.17. That time is good for fourth in school history. Later, on the track,
Camron Gaddis ran the eighth fastest time in the mile with a final time of 4:28.34. In the 400m dash,
Titus Hand finished sixth in the race with a time of 50.47. Then
Sancho Smith and
Rakiem Barnes finished sixth and seventh in the 800m run with times of 1:56.76 and 1:57.12, respectively.
After finishing in seventh in the 200m dash prelims, Hand finished in sixth in the finals with a time of 22.65. In the relays, the men's DMR team of Barnes,
Kahmani Zachery,
Nehemiah Horton, and Gaddis finished in third place and received all-conference mention with a time of 10:37.66. Flagler beat out Clayton State for second place by three one-hundredths of a second in the race. The meet ended with the 4x400 meter relay. The team of Hand, Smith, Hicks, and
Da'Tavion Lawson finished in fourth place with a time of 3:23.24. Flagler beat out Clayton State by four-tenths-of-a-second for All-Conference honors.
In the field,
Freddie Hawkins won the conference championship in the high jump as he cleared 1.98m. Zachery also brought home all-conference honors with a third-place finish with a final mark of 1.93m. Later, in the field,
Davonte Jackson earned All-Conference honors in the long jump with a third place finish with a final mark of 6.70m.
Adarius Andrews finished fourth in the event with a final distance of 6.62m. Jackson then followed up with another all-conference performance in the triple jump with a final mark of 14.11m.
WOMEN'S SIDE
The Lakers kicked off action on the track in the 60m dash as
Maya Adams and
Cassidy Jenkins qualified for finals. In the finals, Adams finished in fifth with a time of 8.04 while Jenkins finished in eighth with a time of 8.18. In the 3000m run,
Tanaeya Johnson ran the third-fastest time in school history with a final time of 10:35.09. In the 400m dash,
Ariyonna Jones gathered all-conference honors with a second-place finish with a time of 57 seconds. Jones then finished as the conference champion in the 200m dash with a final time of 24.93. This is the second time this season that Ariyonna finished sub. 25 seconds in the event. Next on the track was the 800m run and
JaBresha Palmer finished in seventh place with a time of 2:22.23. That time is good for third in school history and a new PR.
In the relays, the team of
Story Alexander,
Joy McLeod, smith, and Johnson gathered all-conference honors in the DMR with a time of 13:26.52. The meet ended with the 4x400 meter relay. The team of Jones, McDonald, Palmer, and
Cassidy Jenkins finished in third place with a time of 3:58.68, shattering the previous school record that was set in 2020. The four Lakers went home with All-Conference mention and became the first 4x400 indoor team to go sub-four minutes in the event. In the field events,
Jaazer Ridges and
Trinity Acree finished in fifth and sixth place in the long jump with final marks of 5.03m and 4.98m, respectively. Ridges would follow that up with a fourth place finish in the triple jump with a final distance of 10.74m. That mark is a new PR for Ridges.
Below are all the competitors for the Lakers in the indoor championships:
*All-Conference
** School Record
& PBC All-Sportsmanship Team
WHAT'S NEXT?
The Lakers open their outdoor season on Saturday, March 2
nd as they travel up to Rome, Ga. to compete in the Victor Icebreaker Duals hosted by Berry College.
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