Women's Track & Field | April 30, 2024
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The Clayton State University track & field teams competed in the 2024 Peach Belt Conference (PBC) Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Monday and Tuesday. The Laker women's team finished second with 109 points while the men's team finished fifth with 93 points. This is the highest conference finish for the women's team in school history. The meet ended with three school records falling, 26 all-conference performances, and two NCAA Division II provisional marks met.
MONDAY ACTION
PRELIMS
The Lakers took full advantage of the track conditions and saw multiple athletes qualify for the finals on Tuesday. Below are the student-athletes that qualified for the finals on Tuesday and their respective races.
FINALS
The first result on the track came in the men's 1500m run as
Camron Gaddis becomes the first Laker since 2017 to go sub-four minutes as he finished in ninth with a time of 3:58.99. That time is good for the sixth all-time. In the long jump, Alexander finished fourth with a final mark of 5.34m.
Jaazer Ridges finished eighth in the event. In the men's long jump, Jackson jumped to a sixth-place finish with a final mark of 6.73m. The meet's first all-conference mentions for the Lakers came in the men's high jump as
Kahmani Zachery and
Freddie Hawkins tied for second with final marks of 1.92m. Sariya Henry finished sixth in the women's long jump with a final mark of 1.44m.
TUESDAY ACTION
The first result of Tuesday comes in the women's heptathlon as McLeod finished fifth with 2798 points. Joy finished third in the 800m run with a time of 2:39.16 while finishing fourth in the 100m hurdles, 200m dash, and in the high jump. The Lakers gathered a pair of all-conference honors in the 4x100 meter relay. The team of Hart, Archer, and Zachery finished second with a final time of 41.86 seconds while the team of Alexander, Alston, Jones, and
Cayla Brown also finished second with a time of 47.32 seconds. Immediately following the 4x100, Jackson grabbed an all-conference honor in the 110m hurdles with a third-place finish with a time of 15.04, which is second all-time in program history. McLeod clocked the sixth fastest time in the 100m hurdles with a time of 16.49.
Later on the track, the Lakers swept the 400m dash as
Keith Hicks won the men's race with a time of 48.91 and Jones won the women's race with a time of 55.75. That time is good for a new school record and an NCAA DII provisional mark. McDonald also gathered all-conference recognition with a third-place finish with a time of 57.53. In the 100m dash, Hart earned the title as the "fastest Man in the PBC" as he won the race with a time of 10.52. That time is good for a new school record shattering the old mark that was set in 2017. In the women's 100m dash, Alexander gathered all-conference mention with a third-place finish with a time of 12.18. In the men's 800m run,
Sancho Smith clocked a new PR finishing with a time of 1:53.34, which was good for sixth place overall.
In the 400m hurdles,
Ivorie Smith finished in second place and brought home all-conference honors with a time of 66.87 while McLeod finished in fourth in the race with a time of 67.15. In the 200m dash, Jones continues to have a dominant Tuesday as she won race with a time of 24.26, hitting her second NCAA DII provisional mark on the day. That time is also good for a new school record. Alston, Alexander, and McDonald finished fifth, sixth, and eighth, respectively in the race. In the 3k steeplechase,
Tanaeya Johnson finished fifth with a time of 11:55.78 while
Story Alexander finished in seventh with a time of 12:09.18.
In the field,
Jaazer Ridges finished sixth in the triple jump with a final mark of 10.62m and Jackson gathered all-conference honors with a third-place finish with a final mark of 14.51m on the men's side. Concluding the meet is the 4x400 meter relay where the Lakers swept the field away and finished first in both races. The team of
Sancho Smith, Andrews, Hicks, and Barnes ran a final time of 3:17.35 while the team of McDonald, Palmer, Alexander, and Jones finished with a time of 3:53.00.
Below are the top-10 finishers for the Lakers at the Conference Championships.
Note: This list is just reflecting finals not Prelims
*All-Conference
** New School Record
| Name |
Event (s) |
Place: Time/Mark |
| Camron Gaddis |
1500m run
800m run |
9th: 3:58.99
10th: 1:55.71 |
| Joy McLeod |
Heptathlon
110m hurdles
400m hurdles |
5th: 2798
6th: 16.49
4th: 67.15 |
| Christopher Hart |
4x100 meter relay
100m dash
200m dash |
2nd: 41.86*
1st: 10.52**
8th: 22.69 |
| Dominic Archer |
4x100 meter relay
100m dash |
2nd: 41.86*
5th: 10.87 |
| Kelvin Oppong |
4x100 meter relay |
2nd: 41.86* |
| Kahmani Zachery |
4x100 meter relay
High Jump |
2nd: 41.86*
T-2nd: 1.92m* |
| Journie Alexander |
4x100 meter relay
100m dash
200m dash
Long Jump
Triple Jump
4x400 meter relay |
2nd: 47.32*
3rd: 12.18*
6th: 26.03
4th: 5.34m
9th: 10.04m
1st: 3:53.00* |
| Jada Alston |
4x100 meter relay
100m dash
200m dash |
2nd: 47.32*
6th: 12.41
5th: 25.29 |
| Ariyonna Jones |
4x100 meter relay
400m dash
200m dash
4x400 meter relay |
2nd: 47.32*
1st: 55.75**
1st: 24.26**
1st: 3:53.00* |
| Cayla Brown |
4x100 meter relay |
2nd: 47.32* |
| Davonte Jackson |
110m hurdles
400m hurdles
Long Jump
Triple Jump |
3rd: 15.04*
6th: 54.85
6th: 5.73m
3rd: 14.51m |
| Ishmeal Neblett |
110m hurdles |
6th: 15.84 |
| Keith Hicks |
400m dash
4x400 meter relay |
1st: 48.91*
1st: 3:17.35* |
| Rakiem Barnes |
400m dash
4x400 meter relay |
4th: 49.33
1st: 3:17.35* |
| Adarius Andrews |
400m dash
Long Jump
4x400 meter relay |
6th: 49.63
10th: 6.57m
1st: 3:17.35* |
| Kennedy McDonald |
400m dash
200m dash
4x400 meter relay |
3rd: 57.53*
8th: 26.15
1st: 3:53.00* |
| Ivorie Smith |
400m dash
400m hurdles |
4th: 59.41
2nd: 66.87* |
| JaBresha Palmer |
400m dash
4x400 meter relay |
6th: 60.05
1st: 3:53.00* |
| Maya Adams |
100m dash |
7th: 12.53 |
| Sancho Smith |
800m run
4x400 meter relay |
6th: 1:53.34
1st: 3:17.35* |
| Jaazer Ridges |
Long Jump
Triple Jump |
8th: 5.09m
6th: 10.62m |
| Freddie Hawkins |
High Jump |
T-2nd: 1.92m* |
| Rodney Crawford |
High Jump
Triple Jump |
6th: 1.82m
8th: 12.48m |
| Sariya Henry |
High Jump |
6th: 1.44m |
WHAT'S NEXT?
The Lakers compete at the Lee University Last Chance Meet on Saturday, May 11
th. Action on the track and in the field starts at 8:30 p.m. in Cleveland, Tenn.
Be sure to follow Clayton State Athletics on
Twitter,
Instagram and
Facebook.
