NCCU’s McClam Places 16th in Long Jump at NCAA East Regional
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – North Carolina Central University senior Joshua McClam closed out his college career as the 16th-best Division I long jumper in the eastern half of the United States.
The Holly Springs, North Carolina native earned that distinction with a leap of 7.48 meters at the NCAA Division I East Regional Championship on Thursday, hosted by the University of North Florida in Jacksonville.
McClam’s distance of 24 feet, 6.5 inches is the second-best long jump of his career, and was less than an inch from qualifying the senior for the 2016 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field National Championship meet on June 8-11 in Eugene, Oregon.
In a field of the top 48 long jump student-athletes in the Division I east region, McClam was the top performer out of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and finished third among representatives of North Carolina schools (Trey McRae of Charlotte placed ninth; Jonathan Addison of N.C. State placed first).
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NSU’s Coles Advances in 400 Meters in NCAA East Prelims
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Norfolk State senior sprinter Steve Coles ran a 400-meter dash time of 46.79 seconds Thursday evening to advance to the next round at the NCAA East Preliminary Round hosted by the University of North Florida.
Coles ran the fourth-fastest time in his 400-meter heat, which was the first of the six heats contested Thursday. The top three finishers in each heat automatically qualified for the next round in addition to the next six-fastest times overall, and Coles grabbed one of those six spots with his second-best career clocking.
Coles will need to be one of the top 12 finishers out of the 24 men who advance to Friday night’s quarterfinal round in order to advance to the NCAA Outdoor National Track & Field Championships at Oregon next month. Friday’s quarterfinal round starts at 6:15 p.m. at UNF.
Also Thursday, redshirt sophomore Allan Frye competed in the 400-meter hurdles. Frye placed sixth in his heat and 37th overall out of the 48 athletes in the event, posting a time of 53.00 seconds in his final race of the season.
Both Coles and Frye were making the first NCAA regional appearances of their careers.
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Eagles Track & Field Trio Concludes Season at NCAA East Prelim
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Three Eagles competed on day one of the 2016 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field East Preliminaries at UNF’s Hodges Stadium, but were unable to advance to the championship round.
Coppin State senior hurdler Tanaya Yarde placed 42nd overall with a time of 1:00.90 in the women’s 400 meter hurdle preliminaries. This was her fourth fastest time this season concluding her collegiate career in the blue and gold. Yarde has the three fastest time in Coppin State women’s track and field history in the women’s 400 meter hurdles.
On the men’s side, junior runners Mark London and Michael James both competed in the men’s 800 meter preliminaries. London placed 35th with a time of 1:50.18 while James was 47th at 1:52.65. That was London’s second fastest time this season in the event.
The action continues on Friday with a pair of Eagles competing in the women’s high jump event at 5:00 p.m. tonight. Senior Deandra Daniel and freshman Khemani Roberts will both participate in the women's high jump preliminaries. Daniel ranks 19th with a season best measure of 1.78 meters at the Penn Relays. Roberts ranks 28th with a personal best mark of 1.77 meters at the Morgan State Legacy Meet.
The final Eagles will compete on Saturday in the men’s triple jump. Senior Shane Green ranks 19th in the men's triple jump competition with a personal best mark of 15.80 meters at the Penn Relays. His event is slated for Saturday at 3:00 p.m.
For complete story, visit www.coppinstatesports.com