2016 T&F Collegians Headline NACAC U23 Championships

By Tyler Mayforth, USTFCCCA

July 14, 2016   

NEW ORLEANS — If you thought the next time we’re going to see collegians from 2016 go up against each other on the track and in the field is at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, you got another thing coming.
This weekend marks the start of the North American, Central American and Caribbean Athletics Association (NACAC) U23 Championships. The meet runs from Friday through Sunday in San Salvador, El Salvador.
QUICK LINKS: Meet Home | Performance Lists | Collegians Entered
If all goes according to plan and each collegian who is entered decides to compete in their respective events, we could see some great action.
Here are a few of the events that we’re keeping our eye on this weekend. Check below for the full list of events and let us know on Twitter (@ustfccca) which ones you’re excited about.
Note: Of those athletes entered, 14 will represent their respective countries at the Olympic Games.

Women’s Long Jump

Quanesha Burks vs. Chanice Porter vs. Akela Jones
It’s not often that you get to see the indoor and outdoor champ in NCAA Division I face off against each other in the same year that they won the title. Throw in one of the best non-specialists in the nation and it gets even better.
Alabama’s Quanesha Burks (NCAA DI indoor champ) squares off with Georgia’s Chanice Porter (NCAA DI outdoor champ) with Kansas State’s Akela Jones lording over the proceedings. Burks will represent the United States, Porter her native Jamaica and Jones her native Barbados.
According to the performance list, Burks, Jones and Porter are all seeded better than the meet record of 6.66m set by Jeomi Maduka in 2008. Burks and Jones are separated by one centimeter (6.80m to 6.79m), while Porter is a bit further behind at 6.70m.
Competition begins Sunday morning at 11:40 a.m. ET.

Women’s 800 Meters

Raevyn Rogers vs. Olivia Baker
Oregon’s Raevyn Rogers and Stanford’s Olivia Baker aren’t strangers to each other on the track as they raced three times alone during this past outdoor season. Rogers got the better of Baker each round, including the last matchup at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships in which she completed the indoor-outdoor sweep.
Baker and Rogers were on a collision course once again at the U.S. Olympic Trials – Track & Field, but Baker fell short of making the finals, while Rogers placed fifth in a competitive race.
If Baker and Rogers both stick in Sunday’s NACAC final, they could be pulled to fast times. They’re the third and fourth seed based off the performance list and that’s crazy to think when they’re at 2:00.75 and 2:01.02 already.

Men’s High Jump

Avion Jones vs. Trey Culver
Olympic aspirations eluded Texas Tech’s Trey Culver and East Carolina’s Avion Jones last week. Culver finished in a tie for eighth at the Trials, while Jones no-heighted on 2.16m (7-1).
Should they compete Sunday in the NACAC final and perform up to their seeded marks, they could find the momentum they need going into the long offseason.
Jones is seeded first at 2.31m, with Culver second at 2.26m. Next up is Kansas State’s Christoff Bryan at 2.25m. After that, it falls off to 2.18m and beyond.
The NACAC U23 record is 2.28m, set by Ryasn Ingraham in 2014.

Men’s 400 Meters

Fred Kerley vs. Michael Cherry
Texas A&M’s Fred Kerley (45.10) and LSU’s Michael Cherry (45.11) ended the collegiate season ranked the fourth and fifth fastest men at 400 meters. At this weekend’s NACAC Championships, they’re seeded first and second.
Kerley underwhelmed at Trials (27th in qualifying), while Cherry missed the final by two hundredths of a second.
Both could shine in El Salvador should they compete and make it to Saturday’s final.

Men’s 1500 Meters

Thomas Awad vs. Henry Wynne
Penn’s Thomas Awad and Virginia’s Henry Wynne have unfinished business, not with each other but with the 1500.
Awad was the third fastest collegian this past outdoor season but didn’t get a chance to contest the event at the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships. He did, however, run at Trials, where he finished 24th in the semifinal round.
Wynne captured the indoor mile title and then took third place outdoors in the 1500 behind Akron’s Clayton Murphy and Washington’s Izaic Yorks.
Awad and Wynne are both entered in Friday’s final — the first one on the track — and are seeded well under the meet record of 3:44.45 set by Oliver Collin in 2010.

Collegians At 2016 NACAC U23 Championships
Name	Institution	Event	Country
Mobolade Ajomale	Academy of Art	100 Meters	Canada
Sydney Gidabuday	Adams State	5000 Meters	USA
Patrick Corona	Air Force	5000 Meters	USA
Tadashi Pinder	Alabama	100 Meters	Bahamas
Domonique Williams	Alabama	400 Meters	Trinidad and Tobago
Quanesha Burks	Alabama	Long Jump	USA
Jeremiah Greene	Alabama	Triple Jump	USA
Matthew Campbell	Albany	High Jump	Jamaica
Taliyah Brooks	Arkansas	Heptathlon	USA
Payton Stumbaugh	Arkansas	100-Meter Hurdles	USA
Erin Farmer	Arkansas State	Shot Put	USA
Ebony Morrison	Auburn	100-Meter Hurdles	USA
Dage Minors	Bermuda	1500 Meters	Bermuda
Khadijah Clouden	Birginia State	100 Meters	US Virgin Islands
Erik Peterson	Butler	10,000 Meters	USA
Olivia Pratt	Butler	10,000 Meters	USA
Khalifah Rosser	Cal State LA	400-Meter Hurdles	USA
Monique Griffiths	Cal State Northridge	Hammer	USA
Tynelle Gumbs	Central Arizona	Hammer	British Virgin Islands
Trevia Gumbs	Central Arizona	Hammer	British Virgin Islands
Eldred Henry	Central Arizona	Discus	British Virgin Islands
Tynelle Gumbs	Central Arizona	Discus	British Virgin Islands
Trevia Gumbs	Central Arizona	Discus	British Virgin Islands
Portious Warren	Central Arizona	Shot Put	Trinidad and Tobago
Trevia Gumbs	Central Arizona	Shot Put	British Virgin Islands
Reuben Walters	Central Arizona	110-Meter Hurdles	Trinidad and Tobago
Tynelle Gumbs	Central Arizona	Javelin	British Virgin Islands
Eldred Henry	Central Arizona	Shot Put	British Virgin Islands
Hezekiel Romeo	Central Arizona	Shot Put	Trinidad and Tobago
Loretta Blaut	Cincinnati	High Jump	USA
Brandon Valentine-Parris	Claflin	400 Meters	St. Vincent & Grenadines
Jorel Bellafonte	Clemson	400-Meter Hurdles	Cayman Islands
Kevin Philbert	Cloud County CC	Long Jump	Curacao
Kevin Philbert	Cloud County CC	Triple Jump	Curacao
Duan Asemota	Cofeyville CC	100 Meters	Canada
Rudy Winkler	Cornell	Hammer	USA
Taysia Radoslav	Cornell	400-Meter Hurdles	Canada
Khalil Parris	Detroit	400-Meter Hurdles	Canada
Amina Banks	Duke	1500 Meters	USA
Megan Clark	Duke	Pole Vault	USA
Avion Jones	East Carolina	High Jump	USA
Shayla Sanders	Florida	100 Meters	USA
KeAndre Bates	Florida	Long Jump	USA
Darrielle McQueen	Florida	Triple Jump	USA
Nicole Setterington	Florida State	100-Meter Hurdles	Canada
Dage Minors	Franklin Pierce	800 Meters	Bermuda
Dage Minors	Franklin Pierce	1500 Meters	Bermuda
Natasha Akbarizadeh	Gardner-Webb	Hammer	Canada
Cejhae Greene	Georgia	100 Meters	Antigua & Barbuda
Kendal Williams	Georgia	100 Meters	USA
Chanice Porter	Georgia	Long Jump	Jamaica
Paige Kouba	Harvard	Steeplechase	USA
Autumne Franklin	Harvard	400-Meter Hurdles	USA
Felipe Valencia	Houston	Shot Put	Mexico
Pedrya Seymour	Illinois	100-Meter Hurdles	Bahamas
Brandon Allen	Iona	Steeplechase	Canada
Aaron Mallett	Iowa	110-Meter Hurdles	USA
Brian Williams	Iowa Central CC	Discus	USA
Latoya Gilding	Jackson State	Discus	Trinidad and Tobago
Kendra Clarke	Johnson C. Smith	400 Meters	Canada
Joshua Cunningham	Johnson C. Smith	400 Meters	Canada
Ifeanyichukwu Otuonye	Kansas State	Long Jump	Turks/Caicos
Sonia Gaskin	Kansas State	400 Meters	Barbados
Akela Jones	Kansas State	High Jump	Barbados
Akela Jones	Kansas State	100-Meter Hurdles	Barbados
Rene Perla	Kansas State	400-Meter Hurdles	El Salvador
Shardia Lawrence	Kansas State	Triple Jump	Jamaica
Christoff Bryan	Kansas State	High Jump	Jamaica
Akela Jones	Kansas State	Long Jump	Barbados
Ranae McKenzie	Kansas State	400-Meter Hurdles	Jamaica
Sonia Gaskin	Kansas State	800 Meters	Barbados
William Barnes	Kent State	110-Meter Hurdles	Puerto Rico
Beckie Famurewa	Kentucky	Hammer	USA
Fred Dorsey	Kentucky	100 Meters	US Virgin Islands
Fred Dorsey	Kentucky	Long Jump	US Virgin Islands
Jasmine Camacho-Quinn	Kentucky	100-Meter Hurdles	Puerto Rico
Kiah Seymour	Kentucky	400-Meter Hurdles	USA
Chrisdale McCarthy	Lincoln (Mo.)	100-Meter Hurdles	Jamaica
Mica-Jonathan Petit-Homme	LIU-Brooklyn	400-Meter Hurdles	Haiti
Tramaine Maloney	Lousiana Tech	110-Meter Hurdles	Barbados
Michael Cherry	LSU	400 Meters	USA
John Krzyszkowski	Marquette	Javelin	Canada
Shakima Wimbley	Miami (FL)	400 Meters	USA
Agnes Esser	Minnesota	Hammer	Canada
Agnes Esser	Minnesota	Discus	Canada
Raven Saunders	Mississippi	Shot Put	USA
MJ Erb	Mississippi	Steeplechase	USA
Curtis Thompson	Mississippi State	Javelin	USA
Molly Josephs	Missouri Baptist	10,000 Racewalk	USA
Shavonne Husbands	Missouri State	100 Meters	Barbados
Shavonne Husbands	Missouri State	200 Meters	Barbados
Jonathan Addison	NC State	Long Jump	USA
Alexis Perry	NC State	Long Jump	USA
Sarah Firestone	Nebraska	Javelin	USA
Cody Walton	Nebraska	Decathlon	USA
Kayelle Clarke	New Mexico JC	200 Meters	Trinidad and Tobago
Jermika McBride	Northwestern State	200 Meters	Bahamas
Sonikqua Walker	Ohio State	400 Meters	Jamaica
Leya Buchanan	Oklahoma	100 Meters	Canada
Leya Buchanan	Oklahoma	200 Meters	Canada
Maria Gomez	Olivet Nazarene	Triple Jump	El Salvador
Maria Gomez	Olivet Nazarene	Long Jump	El Salvador
Itohan Aikhionbare	Oregon	Shot Put	Belize
Raevyn Rogers	Oregon	800 Meters	USA
Sam Mattis	Penn	Discus	USA
Tommy Awad	Penn	1500 Meters	USA
Dannielle Gibson	Penn State	Triple Jump	Bahamas
Lauren LaRocco	Portland	5000 Meters	USA
Carmiesha Cox	Purdue	100 Meters	Bahamas
Carmiesha Cox	Purdue	200 Meters	Bahamas
Kyle Webb	Purdue	200 Meters	Bermuda
Kyle Webb	Purdue	400 Meters	Bermuda
Evan Karakolis	Rice	Javelin	Canada
Jenny Lopez	Saint Ambrose	10,000 Racewalk	USA
Anthony Peters	Saint Ambrose	20,000 Racewalk	USA
Khari Herbert	Saint Augustine’s	400 Meters	British Virgin Islands
Tia-Adana Belle	Saint Augustine’s	100-Meter Hurdles	Barbados
Tia-Adana Belle	Saint Augustine’s	400-Meter Hurdles	Barbados
Holland Cabara	Sequoias	100 Meters	Trinidad and Tobago
Taylor Hill	South Plains	100 Meters	British Virgin Islands
Adrian Williams	South Plains	Javelin	St. Kitts & Nevis
Taylor Hill	South Plains	200 Meters	British Virgin Islands
Devin King	Southeastern Louisiana	Pole Vault	USA
Alexander Young	Southeastern Louisiana	Hammer	USA
Andre Colebrook	Southeastern Louisiana	400-Meter Hurdles	Bahamas
Jaide Stepter	Southern California	400 Meters	USA
Tera Novy	Southern California	Discus	USA
Eric Sloan	Southern California	Triple Jump	USA
Warren Hazel	Southern Illinois	400 Meters	St. Kitts & Nevis
Josh Freeman	Southern Illinois	Shot Put	USA
Mike Tate	Southern Utah	1500 Meters	Canada
Ann Dagrin	St. Johns	Hammer	Haiti
Daniel Brady	Stanford	400-Meter Hurdles	Canada
Olivia Baker	Stanford	800 Meters	USA
Freddie Crittenden	Syracuse	110-Meter Hurdles	USA
Kali Davis-White	Tennessee	100 Meters	Jamaica
Chelsea Blaase	Tennessee	10,000 Meters	USA
Kali Davis-White	Tennessee	200 Meters	Jamaica
Clairwin Dameus	Tennessee State	Heptathlon	USA
Audie Wyatt	Texas A&M	Pole Vault	USA
Lathone Collie	Texas A&M	Long Jump	Bahamas
Chrisann Gordon	Texas A&M	400 Meters	Jamaica
Fred Kerley	Texas A&M	400 Meters	USA
Shelbi Vaughan	Texas A&M	Discus	USA
Robert Grant	Texas A&M	400-Meter Hurdles	USA
Lathone Collie	Texas A&M	Triple Jump	Bahamas
Trey Culver	Texas Tech	High Jump	USA
Braheme Days	UCLA	Shot Put	USA
Zack Bornstein	UCLA	Decathlon	Canada
Bryce Miller	UMKC	Steeplechase	USA
Ian LaMere	UW-Platteville	10,000 Meters	USA
Simone Charley	Vanderbilt	Triple Jump	USA
Henry Wynne	Virginia	1500 Meters	USA
Richard Crick	Virginia State	Triple Jump	St. Vincent & Grenadines
Richard Crick	Virginia State	Long Jump	St. Vincent & Grenadines
Jessie Merckle	Wake Forest	Javelin	USA
Tayla Carter	Western Carolina	100 Meters	Bahamas
Ian Kerr	Western Texas College	100 Meters	Bahamas
Damien Odle	Wichita State	Javelin	USA
Georgia Ellenwood	Wisconsin	High Jump	Canada
Georgia Ellenwood	Wisconsin	Long Jump	Canada