AUSTIN – Texas A&M sophomore Deborah Acquah earned a bronze medal in the long jump and broke the school record as the lone finalist for the Aggie women on Thursday, the second day of the NCAA Championships at Mike A. Myers Stadium.
In sixth place after the first three rounds, Acquah found herself in eighth place in the fifth round when she launched a career best leap of 21-9 (6.63) to move into third place. The effort bettered the Aggie school record of 21-5 ¼ (6.53) set by Adrien Sawyer in 1997 and equaled by Tyra Gittens this season.
The Aggie women advanced a pair through to Saturday finals with Syaira Richardson in the 400m and Jazmine Fray in the 800m along with the 4×400 relay. Maddy Stulce was scheduled to compete in the javelin, but weather delays pushed the event to Friday at 2:30 p.m.
Fray, the collegiate leader this season at 2:02.27, won her heat of the 800m in 2:03.08 over Oregon’s Susan Ejore (2:03.43). The leading time was a 2:02.88 by Penn’s Nia Akins.
“Going into the race, even before I saw the times from the other heats, I knew I would have to be on my A game,” noted Fray. “I don’t really worry about the heats ahead of me, I kind of like to do my own thing, focus on my race, and execute my plan. I was excited to make it to the finals.”
Richardson posted a time of 51.60 to finish third in the first heat of the 400m and then waited out the next two heats to see if she would qualify on time. Having the third fastest time overall behind the two SEC foes that finished ahead of her in the first heat secured Richardson’s place in the final.
“It was pretty much all about execution for me,” stated Richardson. “Having a fast heat was very helpful. I came in third and had to wait for times, but I ended up being among the top three overall. I was confident waiting on the other times, and after watching the second heat I knew I was in.”
South Carolina’s Aliyah Abrahams led the 400m field with a 51.51 with Kentucky’s Chloe Abbott runner-up in 51.59. The top five times were from SEC schools.
Aggie Tierra Robinson-Jones, the lone freshman in the 400m semifinal field, ran 52.92 to place fourth in the third heat and placed 12th overall.
In the 4×400, the Aggie placed third in 3:28.18 and qualified to the final on time with a crew of Jarra Owens, Robinson-Jones, Jaevin Reed (52.16) and Richardson (53.33). A&M finished behind USC (3:28.31) and Florida (3:29.32) in the heat, with the Trojans posting the top time overall. Six of the eight finalists are SEC schools.
Nathan Hite scored 7,348 points in the decathlon to place 13th overall. The second day of the decathlon for Hite started with a 15.46 in the 110m hurdles for 795 points and a discus throw of 125-8 for 630 points. Following a lengthy lightning delay, Hite cleared 15-5 ½ (822) in the pole vault and threw the javelin 168-0 (606). Capping the day with the 1,500m, Hite ran 4:46.58 for 639 points.
Friday’s action includes the start of the heptathlon for Tyra Gittens along with Stulce in the javelin. Men’s finals involving Aggies include the 400m, 800m, 400m hurdles, and 4×400 relay.
Story courtesy of Texas A&M Athletics