Firebirds Battle Competitive Field and the Elements at Colonial Relays

WILLIAMSBURG, VA - In what has been hailed as the largest scored meet in the nation outside of the NCAA Championships, the University of the District of Columbia was one of 60 women's track programs competing in this weekend's 51^st running of the Colonial Relays hosted by William & Mary University.

The Firebirds competed over two days of this three-day meet, opening up on Friday with competition primarily in individual events. First up for the Firebirds were competitors in the 100M event. Junior Jasmine Walker was 4^th in Heat 8 with a season best time of 12.45s. Her time was good for 33^rd overall among the large field of 91 runners in the event. But the best Firebirds performance in the 100M would come from Stacy-Ann Rowe, who also sped to a season-best with a quick 12.29s - good for 2^nd place in Heat 6, an impressive 18^th fastest among the 91 competitors, and the top time by a Division II athlete. 

Next up for the Firebirds were the quarter-milers. Senior Marlena Wright made her Outdoor 400M debut with a 7^th place finish in Heat 7 with a time of 59.91s - 62^nd among yet another large field of 102 competitors. Teammate Jerily Benjamin was 3^rd in Heat 4 – in what was also her Outdoor season opener - running 57.47s  to place 15^th overall. Her time was also the fastest on the day by a Division II athlete in the 400M.

The Firebirds continued their good run on the track with Stacy-Ann Rowe going from the 100M to the 100M Hurdles. She would finish 5^th in Heat 5 with a time of 15.13 seconds and placed 31^st overall among 78 competitors. 

UDC then closed out its Friday with a strong performance in the 200M. Senior Simone Grant finished 3^rd in Heat 4 with a time of 25.00s, getting edged by both the winner and runner-up who both ran 24.83s. Grant's time was fastest among Division II athletes and 22^nd overall among 108 competitors. This time also places her 33^rd in all of Division II.

The Relay portion of the meet would get in full swing in pouring rain on Saturday. There would be a mishap for the Firebirds in their first event on Saturday, as the 4x100M Relay team failed to make the first exchange and received a "Did Not Finish" to their name. The Firebirds also had some misfortune with the 4x200M team suffering a disqualification after having made its 3^rd exchange outside the zone.

The Firebirds would then look to the field for a change of fortune, and it came from freshman Saida Burns-Moore in the High Jump. Competing in the Championship Section of the College High Jump, she would be the lone scorer on the day for the Firebirds, clearing 1.65M to finish 3^rd in the large field of 26 jumpers and contributing six points to the team scoring.

The positive energy for the Firebirds would carry over to the 4x400M Relay - the last event of the day. The quartet of Marlena Wright, Jerily Benjamin, Jasmine Walker and Simone Grant competed in Heat 3, in what would be a hotly contested event. The Firebirds were in a see-saw battle with another Division II team, Shippensburg, throughout the first three legs. Wright led off, putting the Firebirds in mid-pack, followed by a tremendous 2^nd leg from Benjamin to go from 5^th to 1^st place. Walker would battle on the 3^rd  leg and hand off with the Firebirds in 2^nd, and UDC would pull off an emphatic victory after a tremendous anchor leg from Grant. The reigning East Coast Conference Track & Field Athlete of the Year took over the lead just shy of the finish line and helped secure the Firebirds' winning time of 3:54.46 - good for 10^th place among 30 teams and tops among all Division II schools in the event. 

Head coach Alton McKenzie said he was proud of the team's ability to compete, and most of all, bounce back, after some disappointments on Saturday.

"We had some great performances on Friday, and we had our ups and downs on Saturday," McKenzie said. "But most importantly, we regrouped and showed resilience, and we had a good showing in the 4x400M to close out the meet. For us to be competitive at such a large meet speaks to the quality we have on our team. I look forward to us taking this experience to make us a better team as the season progresses."

Next week, the Firebirds head to University of Virginia's Lou Onesty/Milton G. Abramson Invitational.