Complete Results
WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. – The LIU Brooklyn women's track & field team had an outstanding first day at the 2013 Northeast Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships, hosted by Monmouth University. The Blackbirds were led by strong performances from underclassmen, including freshman Shanice Grant, who qualified for four different championship events, and Ja'Mesha Richard, who qualfied for three different events.
Freshman Kyaira Wright-Harmon was the highlight for LIU Saturday, winning the women's first outdoor title of the year. Wright-Harmon, who finished second at the indoor championships in the high jump, won her first NEC individual title in style. The freshman won gold in the high jump, clearing 1.77m, a new NEC championship meet record. She bested the former record of 1.75m, which was set back in 2012. Grant also scored crucial points for the LIU women in the high jump Saturday, as she finished fourth, clearing 1.65m.
LIU also had team points scored in the long jump. Freshman Ja'Mesha Richard came in fifth in the long jump with a final distance of 5.42m, while senior Amber Mitchell just missed scoring points for LIU, just three hundredths of a meter short, coming in ninth with a leap of 5.20m
Meanwhile, on the track, the Blackbirds will have a slew of athletes competing in the finals Sunday.
The Blackbirds qualified three athletes for the finals of the 100m hurdles, led by Grant. She won her heat with a time of 14.53 seconds, clinching a spot in tomorrow's finals. There, Grant will be joined by Richard, and junior Camille Thomas, who qualified with their times of 14.59 and 15.13, respectively.
Richard and Grant will also team up in the finals of the 200m dash. Richard won her heat with a time of 24.93 for an automatic spot, while Grant made it on time, running a 25.34.
Sophomore Shakia Williams qualified for the finals of the 400m dash, with her prelim time of 57.62. And sophomore Bryanna Williams got an automatic spot in the finals of the 100m dash, winning her heat with a time of 12.25. Grant, who qualified by time, in 12.20, will join Bryanna Williams in the championship race.
Freshman Alea Stevens will run in the finals of the 400m hurdles, qualifying with her preliminary time of 1:04.31. Sophomore Brittany McClain almost joined her, as she tied for the eight spot with a time of 1:04.94, but when the times were broken down further, she lost out by sixth-thousandths of a second to a Wagner runner.
As a team, the LIU women sit in fifth place overall, with 24 team points after one day of competition. Finals begin Sunday morning at 9:45 a.m. Follow the action live on Twitter or with live results.