2023 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships Results
PUEBLO, Colo. – Now undefeated in three consecutive trips to NCAA Division II Outdoor Nationals, Academy of Art track & field's
Marie-Jeanne Ourega raised her fourth career national championship trophy out at the CSU Pueblo ThunderBowl to start the postseason on Thursday. Numerous other Urban Knights qualified through their respective event prelims including
Robin Black who broke both the ART U 400m hurdles record and contributed to a new program best in the 4x100m relay.
Two attempts into the second long jump flight, it was Ourega leading the field with her 20-6.25 (6.25m) completion. The next two jumps were both improvements as the defending champion started the final round with her best mark of the afternoon at 21-2.5 (6.46m). The season-best effort not only won her the title for the third straight year, but did so by more than four inches. A four-time Long Jump National Champion with now three from outdoor campaigns and one from this past indoor season, Ourega becomes a 17-time All-American with the victory.
Early in Thursday's action on the track, the quartet of
Ajani Ince, Black,
Emmanuel Ajiroba, and
Duncan Agyemang were in quite a battle against the nation's top 4x100m relay teams. A total of 11 squads went sub-40.00 in the prelims including the Urban Knights who delivered their third new program record this season with a 39.61 that qualified them to Saturday's final in eighth overall.
Individually, Black was also very strong. He first took fifth overall in the prelims of the 100m dash with a 10.29 that, despite being third in his particular heat, was quicker than the other two heat runners-up. It was also slightly faster than his previous wind-legal best. The 400m hurdles prelims saw Black better the ART U record to 50.10 while placing second overall. The mark was more than 0.40 seconds faster than
Shareez Hamm who coincidentally also qualified to Saturday's final, going a season-best 50.89 for the fifth spot.
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Agyemang shined outside of the 4x100m relay as well, solidly qualifying through the 400m prelims in fifth overall. He posted a new season-best of 46.25 to put himself well in front of a logjam in the sixth through ninth spots that were separated by only 0.05 seconds.
A thrilling pair of heats in the women's 4x100m relay came down to the wire as
Britney Clark,
Darria Matthias,
Alicia Thomas, and
Selena Arjona-Alcazar claimed the ninth position by just 0.01 seconds with a time of 45.37 across the finish line to beat out Lewis and have an opportunity to compete in the final this weekend.
A men's long jump that eventually culminated in a new meet record of 26-9.25 (8.16m) from Pitt State's Cordell Tinch,
Yacouba Gnacko put himself on the All-America Second Team with his 12th-place finish. Up against PacWest Champion Dylan Fox from Concordia once again, Gnacko saved his best mark for his third and final attempt, soaring to 24-3.5 (7.40m).Â
Day two of Outdoor Nationals for Academy of Art will begin with Gnacko and
Mathieu Tshani in the triple jump (4:05 p.m. PT) ahead of prelims in the women's 200m (4:30 p.m. PT) and 100m hurdles (5:35 p.m. PT) as well as the men's 4x400m relay (7:10 p.m. PT).
