BALTIMORE, Md. - After a two-week break from competing at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, Morgan State’s Jailah Mason and Joel Roberson returned to the high jump pit and the track, respectively at historic Hayward Field on the campus of the University of Oregon on Friday evening, this time for the U.S. Track & Field Olympic Trails (July 1-10).
Mason, a 5-foot-10 sophomore, concluded her season and quest to make the U.S. Olympic team, when she finished tied for 15th overall during the qualifying round.
Mason would end the opening day of the competition as one of the eight athletes to clear 1.79m (5-10 ½). However, with Mason needing two attempts at the 1.79m mark, it would drop her down in the standings. Mason would then scratch all three attempts at 1.84m (6-0 ½), preventing her from advancing to Sunday’s Final.
A native of Sterling, Mich., Mason qualified for the Olympic Trials after setting a school and Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) meet record with a height of 6-1 ¼ (1.86m) during the MEAC Indoor Championships to capture gold, while at the same time qualifying for the trials.
Roberson, a 5-9 junior out of Laurel, Md., would place 28th in the 400 meter dash on Friday with a time of 48.72.
Like Mason, Roberson too had a remarkable season. Roberson captured the 2016 MEAC Outdoor 400m title and was a member of the Bears’ 2016 IC4A Outdoor Championship team. He entered the trials with the 15th fastest time (45.66) in the nation.
Morgan State was the only HBCU (Historically Black College and Universities) to have two athletes compete in the 2016 USA Track & Field (USATF) Olympic Trials.