TAMPA, Fla. – Norfolk State sophomores
Jaylen Banks and
Martha Bissah both placed among the top 24 in the opening rounds of their respective races Thursday to advance at the NCAA East Preliminary Round hosted by the University of South Florida.
Banks won his heat in the 400-meter hurdles in a personal-best time of 51.16 seconds and was the No. 11 qualifier out of the 48 runners in Thursday's first round. Bissah clocked a time of 2:06.90 in the 800 and was the third qualifier out of her heat, 21st overall out of the field in her event. The top 24 from each event advanced to Friday's quarterfinal round, with the top 12 from that round advancing to the NCAA National Outdoor Championships in Oregon next month.
Also Thursday, first-time regional qualifiers
Tyrika Lee,
Kiara Grant and
Trequan Barnes also competed. Lee (28th), a junior ran a PR of 11.47 seconds in the 100 meters and Grant (39th), a freshman, posted a time of 11.65 in the same event, but both finished outside of the top 24 and did not advance. Likewise, Barnes ran a time of 46.81 seconds in the 400 meters, 27th out of the 48 men in the field to conclude his successful freshman campaign.
Competition resumes Friday afternoon. NSU also has sophomore high jumpers
Jacob Milton and
Garth Warner scheduled to compete on Saturday, the final day of the regional.
