Successful First Trip to NCCAA Nationals for Warrior OTF
Columbia, SC – Warrior Track and Field sent four athletes to the NCCAA National Championships in Columbia, SC last weekend and made a splash with their limited numbers. With two men and two women represented, the men scored five points and finished 21st out of 26 teams that scored. The women were not able to score in their first trip to the national tournament.
Cedric Wilson qualified in three events and competed well in all of them. His first competition was the 110M Hurdles where he qualified for the finals with a PR at 16.06 seconds. He had a seventh place finish in the finals, setting another PR at 16.02 seconds. He finished in ninth place and just missed a podium finish in the High Jump with a height of 1.87m (6' 1.5"). His other event was the 400M Hurdles, an event he competed in less than two hours after competing in the 110M H and finished in twelfth place with a time of 1:00.39.
Maurice Gray competed in the Triple Jump and the Long Jump for the Warriors. He finished in seventh place in the Triple Jump on the opening night with a jump of 13.80m (45' 3.5"). The next morning he competed in the Long Jump and received an eighth place finish. He only took one jump in competition as he had some muscle soreness leading into the Triple Jump the night before. His one attempt was 6.48m (21' 3.25") and received points for the Warriors, so he did not risk further soreness and did not attempt another jump.
Aliya McClanahan and Jessa Lee represented Sterling in the Women's Championship. Each competed in one event. McClanahan led things off in the Discus with her best throw traveling 34.70m (113' 10"). That distance was good enough for a thirteenth place finish. Lee competed in the 400m Hurdles and finished the race just behind her personal best with a time of 1:14.67. When looking back at the season, this was just the third time that Lee ran the 400m Hurdle and she finished fifteenth in the National Championship.
Head Coach Mason Blevins is looking to build on the foundation of success this year's team has set. He is already looking towards next season and the team he is expecting in the fall with high hopes of sending a larger team to the national tournament next year.
For a complete list of results, click here.
Be sure to check for news and updates on Sterling Warrior Athletics on Facebook (/SCWarriors), Twitter (@SterlingCSports), and Instagram (sterlingcsports), as well as the hashtag #SwordsUp. Watch the Warriors' live home events on the Sterling College Sports Network.
