Clear skies covering USF Track and Field Stadium on Friday turned to floods of heavy rain accompanied by bright flashes of lightning. It was the second day that the weather delayed the last event for UF’s men’s and women’s track and field teams, but for the second time, another Florida qualifier for NCAA Outdoor Championships was the result.
After junior Yanis David and senior Darielle McQueen qualified in the long jump following the Day 1 weather delay, it was senior Lloydricia Cameron’s turn on Day 2.
Cameron got it done in the women’s discus to become the fifth Gator thrower to secure a spot at this year’s national competition and the first Gator since LaQuanda Cotten in 2004 to qualify in both the discus and shot put.
With a flurry of its athletes clocking personal records on Day 2 of the NCAA East Preliminary, UF added eight more qualifiers to its list of competitors on their way to Eugene, Oregon, for NCAAs.
A couple more of the Gators’ veterans are headed back to Eugene after successful outings in Tampa, Florida, on Friday.
Junior quarter-miler Sharrika Barnett took third (51.46) in the women’s 400-meter final to earn her spot at nationals for the second-consecutive year.
Ryan Clark will return to nationals to compete in the men’s 100 after running the fastest time of his career (10.16) on Friday. His eighth-place finish ranks him No. 8 in UF’s Outdoor All-Time Top 10 in the event.
Clark also competed in the men’s 200-meter prelim and finished in 20.43 to advance to the final, which is set to take place on the last day of the meet. It was another personal record for the junior, and it was another spot on the program’s All-Time Top 10 list.
For a handful of other Gators, it will be their first time making the trip to Eugene to participate in one of collegiate track and field’s most competitive meets.
Freshman Taylor Manson will join Barnett in the women’s 400 after she clocked a personal-best time of 51.84 in Friday’s final, 0.42 better than her previous record.
Chantz Sawyers, another first-year Gator, found his way across the finish line in 45.40 in the men’s 400 to make his first appearance at outdoor nationals. It was a personal best for the freshman, and he’ll travel to Eugene as the top quarter-miler for UF’s men.
A couple more personal-record performances came from sophomore Brandee’ Johnson and freshman Nikki Stephens. Johnson finished in fifth place (51.07), and Stephens finished in ninth (57.21) in the women’s 400-meter hurdles. Both times were good enough to send the duo to the NCAAs for the first time in their college careers.
Cory Poole got it done in the men’s 400-meter hurdles with a fourth place finish and an automatic berth to his first outdoor championship meet.
Poole will also look to compete at nationals in the 110-meter hurdles competition after he clocked a qualifying time (13.81) in Friday’s preliminary race. Sophomore Grant Holloway took second in the same event to advance to Saturday’s final race for the championship spot.
For the women, Johnson will compete in Saturday’s 110-meter final after her second personal record (13.17) of the day in the preliminary race.
UF heads into Day 3 of the NCAA East Preliminary with 17 of its 47 entries already in position to score championship points for the program at its June 6-9 meet.
You can follow Alanis Thames on Twitter @alanisthames or contact her at athames@alligator.org.
Senior thrower Lloydricia Cameron became the first Gator since 2004 to advance to the NCAA Outdoor Championships in both the shot put and discuss.
