UM Track Closes Strong at NCAA Championships
EUGENE, Ore. – The University of Miami track and field team closed out the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Championships with a strong showing on the final day of competition.
The Hurricanes had competitors in the women’s high jump, women’s 400m final and women’s 4x400m final and earned top 10 finishes in each of the three events.
Shakima Wimbley finished third in the women’s 400m final with a time of 51.43 seconds. The junior ran out of Lane 6 in the final and charged down the home stretch to secure her third place finish at the NCAA Championships, finishing with the fastest time by a non-senior student-athlete. Wimbley, who reached the final after winning Heat 1 of the 400m semifinals on Thursday, will be back at Hayward Field in July to compete at the U.S. Olympic Trials.
Wimbley also ran the anchor leg on Miami’s 4x400m relay on Saturday, teaming with Erin Ford, Aiyanna Stiverne and Brittny Ellis to run a time of 3:32.24 that placed the Hurricanes seventh in the final event of the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Championships.
The Canes earned a spot in the final after the quartet of Destiny Washington, Siverne, Ellis and Wimbley finished third in Heat 1 of the 4x400m semifinals with a time of 3:29.68 that ranks fifth in school history. The time was the third fastest in the semifinals and Miami advanced with the fastest non-automatic qualifying time.
Dakota Dailey-Harris was the first Hurricane in action on the final day at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, finishing 10th in the women’s high jump with a mark of 1.78m. The senior cleared the opening height of 1.73m on her first attempt and did the same at 1.78m. Dailey-Harris did not clear the third bar, missing on three attempts at 1.82m to close out her day at the NCAA Championships.
A two-time NCAA outdoor qualifier, Dailey-Harris won the ACC indoor high jump title in February and placed third at the NCAA Indoor Championships. She closed out her collegiate career as Miami’s school record holder in both the indoor (1.84m) and outdoor (1.85m) high jump. While her Hurricane career is complete, Dailey-Harris will compete at the U.S. Olympic Trials at Hayward Field in July.
Miami’s women finished the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Championships in 16th place with 15 points, nearly doubling their team score of eight from a year ago.
The Hurricanes had women advance to the national meet in the 400m, 100m hurdles, 4x100m relay, 4x400m relay, pole vault, high jump and hammer throw. Miami had men qualify for the NCAA Championships in the shot put and triple jump. The 2016 NCAA Outdoor Championships were held at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., from June 8-11.
For the second straight year, the NCAA Outdoor Championships schedule has been divided by gender. The men competed on Wednesday, June 8, and Friday, June 10, while the women were in action on Thursday, June 9, and Saturday, June 11. All four days of the 2016 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships were broadcasted live on the ESPN family of networks.
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