Posted: May 28, 2014

Jones, Benjamin, Wright and Grant Earn Division II Outdoor Track & Field All-American Honors

NEW ORLEANS – The Firebirds' 4x400M Relay Team of Kaydian Jones, Jerily Benjamin, Marlena Wright and Simone Grant were announced All-Americans by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Tuesday.

"Without all 4 student-athletes doing their job on the same day, we most definitely wouldn't have achieved as much as we did in 2014," head coach Alton McKenzie said. "They put it all together, much like they've done all year to produce an amazing effort which not just made them All-Americans but the 4th best team in the Country."

Student-athletes were honored for their performance at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships this past weekend in Allendale, MI. Those who earned any portion of a team point at the championships earned the distinction, and the Firebirds earned five points with their 4^th place national finish in a season-best time of 3:42.63.

This honor caps a remarkable 2013-14 season for this quartet in which they earned All-American honors in both Indoor & Outdoor Track, won the East Coast Conference 4x400M Relay event and team championships in Indoor Track, and became the school's first ever event champion at the Colonial Relays and first relay team to win a Heat and advance to the Finals at Penn Relays.

"What a year! If I said I thought at the beginning of the year that we would be 4th best in the Nation in Division II at the National Championships I would be telling a lie. However, as the season progressed and we gelled as a team, I thought this quartet - Kaydian, Jerily, Marlena and Simone - really learned how to just race and be competitive, and when we lined up they were always ready to run fast," McKenzie said. "I can't take all the credit for how well they performed, but I'm really proud of the manner in which we competed throughout the season and the team chemistry created when running these four on our 4x400M Relay Team."