BALTIMORE – Coppin State’s duo of track and field student-athletes Deandra Daniel and Michael James represented well at the North American, Central American and Caribbean (NACAC) championships this past weekend in San Jose, Costa Rica.
Competing for her home country of Trinidad & Tobago, Daniel finished third in the high jump with a clearance of 1.85 meters. A rising senior, Daniel also participated in the high jump at the Pan-Am Games last month in Toronto.
Daniel’s effort at the NACAC Championships was a strong ending to a memorable year. She earned Indoor All-America honors, won the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) indoor and outdoor high jump championships and participated in the NCAA Division I East Region Preliminary Championships in Jacksonville (Fl.).
Daniel earned a spot on the United States Track and Field Cross-Country Coaches' Association (USTFCCCA) All-Academic Track and Field Team for the second straight season. She was also named to the MEAC Commissioners All-Academic Team.
In addition, Daniel was named the 2015 Coppin State Female Athlete of the Year and 2015 Coppin State Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Meanwhile, James, who was running for his home country of St. Lucia, was fourth in his heat of the preliminaries and 11th overall. A rising junior, James finished his race in a time of 1 minute, 53.29 seconds.
James enjoyed a solid year for the Coppin State track and field team.
During the indoor season, James was a member of the Eagles' 4 x 400-meter relay team that was seventh at the IC4A Championships. During the MEAC Championship meet, James was seventh in the 400-meter dash. He ran his personal best time of 49.56 seconds during the preliminary round. James also turned in a strong showing at the Boston Invitational in which he qualified for IC4A Championships. He ran 1:52.25.
The NACAC Championships is a continental track and field athletics event organized by the North America, Central America and Caribbean Athletic Association. The last of the six IAAF areas to hold a continental senior athletics competition, the NACAC Championships' inaugural edition was held in 2007 in San Salvador, El Salvador.