Results
New York, N.Y. – The LIU Brooklyn men's and women's indoor track teams opened 2012 at the Metro Coaches Invitational at the Armory in New York, N.Y. on Friday. Senior Jessie Gaines started the year with a bang, recording three first place finishes.
Gaines started the day taking the top spot in the 60-meter dash, recording a time of 7.58. The Chesapeake, Va. native went on to take the top spot in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.6, followed by a leap of 12.42 meters in the triple jump.
Senior Torrie Saunders crossed the line third in the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.72, while classmate Jazmin Waller was fourth with a time of 7.85. Freshman Bryanna Williams was seventh with a time of 8.03.
In the 500-meter dash, freshman Shakia Williams ran a 1:17.18 to earn second place, while senior Kadisha Wickham came in the third place with a time of 1:17.98. Rookie Brittany McClain was fifth with a time of 1:21.19.
Senior Emily Rosario took ninth place in the 1,000-meter run with a time of 3:15.22. Sophomore Camille Thomas joined Gaines in the 60-meter hurdles, taking second place with a time of 9.1.
Williams earned gold in the long jump with a leap of 5.7 meters, while junior Amber Mitchell was fifth with a jump of 5.33 meters. Freshman Bianca Miller was eighth in the shot put, earning a mark of 7.92 meters.
The Blackbirds went 1-2 in the 4x400-meter relay, with McClain, Williamson, senior Charlene Fuller and freshman Simone Epps coming in first with a time of 3:54.67. Waller, Saunders, Mitchell and Wickham were second with a time of 3:59.46.
On the men's side, senior Robert Barnes came in fourth in the 500-meter dash with a time of 1:04.2. Junior Jamal Roberts and freshman Andi Augustin were seventh and eighth, clocking in at 1:05.72 and 1:05.76, respectively.
Juniors Chris Welch and Rogers Kipruto earned top ten spots in a pair of distance events, with Welch taking sixth in the 1,000-meter run with a time of 2:32.83. Kipruto was third in the mile run with a time of 4:23.24.
Junior Brian Richards was fourth in the 60-meter hurdles, crossing the line in 8.24 seconds, while senior Amire Solomon with fourth in the triple jump with a leap of 6.6 meters.
LIU took second and third in the 4x400-meter relay, with junior Nickolei Mahlung, Barnes, freshman Mikhail Williamson and junior Dwayne Layne were taking second with a time of 3:19.71. Richards and Roberts combined with senior Jarenn Stewart and freshman Cameron Cipcic to take third with a time of 3:24.67.
In the 4x800-meter relay, Welch, Augustin, junior Kenneth Wallace Whitfield and sophomore Branden Arrington were third with a time of 8:07.34.
The Blackbirds are back in action on Jan. 13 at the NYU Gotham Cup, also taking place at the Armory.