Firebirds Impress at George Mason Invitational
FAIRFAX, VA - With over 1,000 athletes competing from 36 schools and clubs, the University of the District of Columbia women's outdoor track and field squad showed why they are a force in the East Coast Conference and the entire East Region with strong performances across the board at the George Mason Spring Invitational on Saturday. The Firebirds finished tied for 15th (with 12 points) among 28 teams that scored points at the meet.
"Today was an inspiring day with great performances from our student-athletes," head coach Alton McKenzie said. "I thought we competed very hard today, and the results reflected that. To be able to step up and compete with such a large contingent of athletes, primarily Division I along with elite athletes shows the quality on our team."
Starting off the scoring for the Firebirds was the ever- consistent junior Kaydian Jones (Journalism – Kingston, Jamaica/St. Andrew HS). With three of her five jumps over 5.50M, she again showed why she is one of the top Long Jumpers in the country in Division II. Competing primarily amongst Division I competitors, she was able to jump an impressive 5.63M to finish 4th overall in a large field of 42 long jumpers.
Also competing in the Long Jump was freshman Simone Grant (Health Education – Bronx, NY/Pelham Prep Academy) who just missed making the finals of the Long Jump with a mark of 5.35M and finished 12th overall in the field of 42 competitors.
Both Jones and Grant left the Long Jump to compete on the 4x100M Team, competing with junior Shauna-Kay Creary (Accounting – Kingston, Jamaica/St. Andrew HS) and junior Atiya Amis (Mass Media – Washington, DC/Dunbar Senior HS). Jones had to run from the Long Jump Pit to the starting line to lead off the 4x100M Team (missing out on what would have been her fifth Long Jump attempt), and still managed to establish a sizeable lead for the Firebirds. She handed off Creary who maintained the advantage. Atiya Amis was 3rd for the Firebirds and she ran a solid leg to hand off to Grant, who ran a tremendous anchor leg to hold on for the win in Heat 1. Despite not being in the fast heat of the 4x100, the Firebirds were able to speed to a time of 47.78 seconds to finish 3rd best among the 12 teams that competed in the 4x100M.
Other strong performances came from the Firebirds in the 400M, which saw senior Callister Jones (Marketing – Fort Washington, MD/Oxon Hill HS) return to top form in her first outdoor performance. She was 3rd in the 10th Heat with a time of 57.47, which was 13th best overall among 66 competitors. Also, freshman Jerily Benjamin (Undecided – Queens, NY/Phillip Randolph HS) was 5th best in Heat 10 with a time of 58.32 seconds for 21st overall.
The Firebirds, as a team, continue to excel in the sprint events, particularly in the 200M. Creary finished well to win Heat 7 with a time of 25.20 seconds (18th best overall). Teammate Kaydian Jones continued the trend and won the following Heat with an impressive 24.66 seconds to win Heat 8 comfortably. Her effort placed her 8th best overall in the large field of 70 competitors. Her time of 24.66 was just short of the NCAA Provisional mark of 24.62 seconds.
Finally, the Firebirds squad had a very strong showing in the 4x400M, with the team of Callister Jones, Jerily Benjamin, Marlena Wright and Simone Grant running courageously to battle for 3rd the entire race. Unfortunately, a dropped baton on the anchor leg with 150M to go led to a 12th place finish of the 16 teams with a time of 4:03.29.
"Though we had some misfortune in the 4x400M, the fact we were right there with 150M to go makes me very confident that we have big performances to look forward to. Our relay teams are showing our depth in the sprints, and I'm excited for what's to come from the team in the coming weeks."
The Firebirds return to action on Saturday, April 20th at the Morgan State Legacy Meet in Baltimore, MD.