Saturday, April 16, 2011

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville won 11 events, including a top-three sweep in two, en route to claiming its sixth consecutive Atlantic Sun Conference Women’s Outdoor Track and Field championship on Saturday with 243 points.

Host team, UNF, claimed second place with 158 points, edging Kennesaw State’s 151 points.

The Dolphins had a one-, two-finish in the discus throw. Akeela Bravo picked up the gold with a distance of 43.27m while Ronnisha Hall threw a distance of 41.02m. KSU’s Suzee Mills was third, throwing a mark of 38.62m. JU’s Stacey Young won the triple jump with a distance of 12.19m. ETSU had second and third place finishes in the event with Bethany Lender hitting a mark of 12.09m and Lexie Burley a distance of 11.92m.

In the high jump, Lipscomb’s O'Neisha Smith had a winning high of 1.70m. Belmont’s Jilian Linklater was second (1.70m) and JU’s Charlene Charles finished third (1.65m).

Kennesaw State’s Mills was first in the javelin with a distance of 38.42m. Ester Mellado, from Belmont, had a distance of 37.82m for a second place finish while JU’s Hall was third with a throw of 36.19m.

UNF’s Brianna Frazier set a new A-Sun meet and facility record with a winning mark in the 400m dash with a time of 53.78. She broke the previous record for both (53.80) which was set in 2010 by JU’s Unique Singleton. The Dolphins finished second and third in the event with Danielle Davenport (53.82) and Singleton (53.98).

The 200m event saw JU taking the top three spots as Singleton successfully defended her title in the event with a time of 23.25. Davenport finished second with a time of 23.66 while Louise Kiernan had a time of 23.67 to place third.

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Jacksonville’s 4x100m relay team of Davenport, Singleton, Kiernan and Sarah Mecklenburg recorded a time of 45.60 to win the event. This is JU’s third consecutive 4x100 title. ETSU’s team placed second running a time of 46.21 while UNF’s team ran a time of 46.72 to place third.

The top two spots in the 3,000m steeplechase broke the facility record as Lipscomb’s Catherine Beals set the new mark with a time of 11:07.00. UNF’s Ecaterina Gheorghiu finished in second with a time of 11:11.20.

JU continued its winning ways, claiming the top spot in the 100m dash as Kiernan defended her title with a time of 11.55. ETSU’s Emani Harris recorded a time of 11:71 to finish second and KSU’s Cynthia Davis was third with a time of 11.85.

Bienna Freeman took the top spot in the 800m for JU, with a time of 2:07.87, setting a facility and A-Sun meet record. The previous record for both was 2:08.99, set by ETSU’s Heidi Dahl in 2009.

Joane Pierre secured first and second place points for the Dolphins in the 1,500m and 800m with times of 4:33.89 and 2:10.92, respectively. Lipscomb had a pair of top three finishes in the 1,500m. Dani Walker placed second with a time of 4:38.15 and teammate Amanda Twigg placed just behind with a time of 4:39.38.

The Dolphins went one and three in the 100m hurdles as Stacey Young took the title with a time of 13.53 while J’Zotta Rolle posted a time of 14.11. UNF’s Jasmine Jackson was second, notching a time of 14.04.

JU dominated the 400m hurdle event, claiming the top three spots. Young was first with a time of 1:00.94. Two time A-Sun 400m hurdle champion, Rolle finished second (1:01.56) and Alana Walker was third (1:02.93).

KSU’s Mackenzie Howe followed up her 10,000m win from day one with a 5,000m win during the second day of competition. Howe claimed her third consecutive 5,000m title with a time of 16.55.64. UNF’s Shelby Kittrell placed second with a time of 17:11.92 while Upstate’s Jemeli Sang had a time of 17:27.46 for a third place finish.

The Dolphins capped a successful day with a win in the final event. Earning its third straight 4x400m title, team of Freeman, Davenport, Rolle and Singleton had a time of 3:40.69 to set a new facility and A-Sun meet record. UNF placed second with a time of 3:50.34 and KSU was third, recording a time of 3:52.35.

Kennesaw State's Naomi Mack earned back-to-back heptathlon titlesby earning third-place finishes in the long jump and javelin throw before finishing in style with a victory in the 800-meter run. She crossed the finish line in a time of 2:26.59 to finish with a two-day total of 4,620 points ahead of Jacksonville's Rayanna Johnson with 4,330.

JU won four of the five A-Sun end of the season honors as head coach Ron Grigg was named Coach of the Year. Unique Singleton was the Outstanding Female Track Performer of the Year while Ronnisha Hall was named the Outstanding Female Field Performer of the Year. The Most Valuable Female Performer went to Stacey Young. UNF’s Brianna Frazier claimed Outstanding Female Freshman Performer honors.

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