NCCU Hurdler Vincent ends season at NCAA East Regional
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – North Carolina Central University junior Kevin Vincent ended his season on Thursday evening in the first round of the 400-meter hurdles at the 2015 NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Preliminary Championships in Jacksonville, Florida.
The Cary, North Carolina native was among the top 48 hurdlers in the east region, but his race to advance to the quarterfinals did not go as planned.
Vincent, who placed fifth in his heat and 43rd overall with a time of 54.25 seconds.
His time was less than four seconds off of the fastest time in the field (50.35 by Quincy Downing of LSU), but was nearly two seconds behind his personal-best time of the season (52.17).
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B-CU’s Johnson and Williams headed to NCAA Championships
JACKSONVILLE – Tristie Johnson’s berth in the NCAA Track and Field National Championship was determined by .003 seconds. Ed’Ricus Williams advanced as well, with the second to last of 12 open spots in his event.
But don’t use the word “barely” to describe either Bethune-Cookman result from Friday’s NCAA East Preliminary at UNF’s Hodges Stadium. Punching a ticket to Eugene, Oregon is punching a ticket to Eugene, Oregon whatever the margin may be.
Johnson qualified for her second NCAA championship appearance with a 12th place finish in the 100 meter dash while Williams finished a deceivingly 10th in the high jump as they joined Kenneth Fisher as Wildcat qualifiers for the June 10-13 championship meet.
After Thursday’s opening round left her in 20th place, Johnson clocked an 11.537 in Friday’s quarterfinal to narrowly edge Syracuse’s Shaina Hairson (11.540) for the 12th and final berth. While Kentucky’s Dezera Bryant pulled away with a blistering 11.14, only. 036 second separated 8th and 14th place.
Johnson will attempt to qualify in the 200 meter dash Saturday. She ran a 23.491, finishing 16th.
Williams gets Saturday off after a performance that was more impressive than a tenth place finish looks.
Competition was halted after the field of 47 was whittled down to 11, plus two more competitors who had a jump-off for the final spot. Williams came in tenth because he missed his first attempt at 6’11 ¾.
That was his only his miss in four attempts. He quickly recovered, and the successful second try all but assured him a top 12 finish.
Williams had a big fan base, including his mom, who has been to practically every big meet this season, including the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference indoor meet in Maryland.
Angelo Cabrera and Kareem Fair finished 14th and 19th, respectively in the 100 meter dash with times of 10.47 and 10.52. Fair also ran the 200 meters, coming in 39th with a time of 21.65. Malik Lewis was 44th in the 110 hurdles at 14.68.
The meet concludes Saturday. In addition to Johnson, Michael Tiller (triple jump) and the 4X100 men’s relay team will compete.
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UMES’ Rmidi Kinini closes out season with one more record
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – All season long sophomore Khalil Rmidi Kinini has set the bar higher and higher in every race he has run. Now the owner of several school records, Rmidi Kinini pushes the envelope over and over again by constantly resetting records he has already surpassed.
His final performance at the NCAA Preliminaries was no different.
After qualifying for the 48-person field in the 3000 meter steeplechase with a record-setting performance at the IC4A/ECAC Championships, the Spanish sophomore reset his own mark with a time of 8:48.06 in the preliminaries. His time is now more than 20 seconds faster than original record holder Mustapha Habbani’s time of 9:10.83 set back in 2011.
Rmidi Kinini finished 17th in the 48 person field with that time. Although the time and standing were both impressive, the Hawk fell just shy of advancing to the Championships in Oregon, because the NCAA takes the top 12 in the steeplechase.
Along with his record in the steeplechase, Rmidi Kinini has broken the 5000 meter record in the outdoor season and four different records for the indoor season.
Senior Dillon Simon also represented the Maroon & Gray proudly with a 19th place finish in the discus, earning that spot with a toss of over 54 meters. Simon was not able to advance in the discus, but he will have a chance to compete in the shot put on Saturday. Sophomore Shauntel Lucius will also participate on the last day of the preliminary as a triple jumper.
The women’s triple jump is estimated to begin at 4:00p.m., while the men’s shot put will start around 5:00 in the evening.
For complete story, visit www.umeshawks.com