Twelve Canes Qualify for NCAA Championships
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The University of Miami has qualified 12 student-athletes in 11 events for the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships following three days of competition at the 2016 NCAA Division I East Regional Outdoor Track & Field Championships held in Jacksonville, Fla.
“I’m really pleased and very proud of how the team competed tonight and throughout the entire weekend,” said Amy Deem, Director of Track and Field at Miami.
On Saturday, nine Hurricanes punched their ticket to the national championships.
Junior Ebony Morrison smashed Miami’s school record in the women’s 100 meter hurdles, winning the event in 12.76 seconds. Morrison, who hails from Miami, topped Ti’erra Brown’s mark of 12.84 seconds set at the 2010 NCAA Outdoor Championships. Morrison’s previous personal best was 13.00 seconds, which she ran in April at the Tom Jones Invitational in Gainesville, Fla. She advances to her second NCAA Championships, after participating in 2014 for Auburn University.
In the first event of the day for the Canes, John-Patrick Friday jumped a wind-aided mark of 16.04 meters in the triple jump on his first leap of the day. In his fourth NCAA East Preliminary, the senior school record-holder placed seventh in the event and advanced to the NCAA Championships for the second straight season. The native of Orlando, Fla., also placed 29th in the high jump, with a mark of 2.08 meters.
In men’s field events, redshirt senior Isaiah Simmons and junior Gian Piero Ragonesi both qualified for nationals in the shot put, placing 10th and 12th, respectively. Simmons, Miami’s school record-holder and the 2016 ACC bronze medalist, posted a toss of 18.65 meters while Ragonesi, who ranks second in school history, recorded a mark of 18.59 meters. Both men were competing in their third NCAA East Preliminary.
“We finished on a strong note with qualifying both of the shot putters — Gian and Isaiah — and JP in the triple jump. Ebony Morrison also had a great run in the 100 meter hurdles and set a big school record there,” Deem added. “Overall it was a really good night for us. We advanced who we thought we should advance, and we got some bonuses, as well.”
The 4×100-meter relay team of junior Shakima Wimbley, freshman Carolyn Brown, junior Aiyanna Stiverne and Morrison won heat two with a time of 43.91 to advance to Eugene, Ore. Their time was the fourth-best posted in the East Regional.
Wimbley and Stiverne also qualified for the NCAA Championships in the 4×400-meter relay, along with freshmen Brittny Ellis and Anna Sjoukje Runia. The relay team placed third in heat two, and 12th overall, with a time of 3:33.80 to secure the final qualification spot in the event.
“It’s the first time in many years that both of the relays have qualified on the women’s side, so I’m very proud of that and pleased that we ran so well in the 4×100 and 4×400 relay events,” Deem said.
In her first NCAA East Preliminary, sophomore Stefani Kerrison ran a personal best of 13.31 in the women’s 100 meter hurdles, placing 15th, and topping her previous best time of 13.52. The time, though, was not fast enough to advance to the Championships.
Senior Tiffany Okieme, a two-time NCAA Indoor Championships qualifier, recorded a mark of 15.02 in the women’s shot put to place 31st at Saturday’s East Preliminary.
The NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Championships will be held in Eugene, Ore., from June 10-13.
“I’m looking forward to getting to Oregon,” Deem concluded.
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National Qualifiers
Senior Precious Ogunleye, hammer throw (60.02m)
Senior Alysha Newman, pole vault (4.25m)
Senior Dakota Dailey-Harris, high jump (1.80m)
Junior Shakima Wimbley, 400-meter dash (51.26)
Junior Aiyanna Stiverne, 400-meter dash (52.53)
Junior Ebony Morrison, 100-meter hurdles (12.76)
Senior John-Patrick Friday, triple jump (16.04m)
Junior Shakima Wimbley, freshman Carolyn Brown, junior Aiyanna Stiverne, junior Ebony Morrison, 4×100 meter relay (43.91)
Freshman Anna Sjoukje Runia, junior Aiyanna Stiverne, freshman Brittny Ellis, junior Shakima Wimbley, 4×400 meter relay (3:33.80)
Redshirt senior Isaiah Simmons, shot put (18.65m)
Junior Gian Piero Ragonesi, shot put (18.59m)
