MEETS: Celebration Pointe Classic / Crimson Elite / Bruce Lehane Scarlet and White Invitational

DATE: Feb. 2-3, 2024 / Feb. 2, 2024 / Feb. 3, 2024

LOCATION: Gainesville, Fla. / Cambridge, Mass. / Boston, Mass.
 

Tampa, Fla., Feb. 3, 2024 – The University of South Florida track and field team wrapped the triple meet weekend, taking home five program records, nine event winners, and 20 new entries into Top-10 program history records.

Abdul-Rasheed Saminu continued his torrid pace, after winning the AAC Male Track Athlete of the Week last week for breaking the men's 60m dash program record (6.67), he again made history, upping his time to 6.61 and taking first place. Zahria Allers-Liburd wrote her name into the record books twice, first breaking the program record in the women's 200m (23.71) and then helping the women's 4x400m relay to break that program record (3:35.19) as well.

Harvard Crimson Elite

With Saminu breaking the men's 60m dash record a second consecutive week, the South Florida record has now been broken every meet this year, after Jermaine Dyges broke it at the first meet. This time Saminu took first place, with Jaleel Croal coming in third, tying his personal best and third best in program history (6.69). 

Markel Jones improved his Top-10 men's 60m hurdles ranking, moving up to second (7.86) and finishing in second place.

South Florida swept first place for both genders in the mile. In the men's mile, both Johnny Reid and Thomas Ashley jumped into the Top-10 in program times, Reid's time (4:16.57) placing him sixth and Ashley's time (4:17.06) placing him seventh. Reid and Ashley finished first and second in the event. For the women, Arden La-Rose won the mile with her pace (5:02.62).

In the field, Annia Ashley took second place in the women's high jump, clearing 1.73 meters.

Bruce Lehane Scarlet and White Invitational

Tyler Drew opened the day by running an 8.04 in the men's preliminary 60m hurdles, the seventh-best event time in men's program history. 

Program records were set in both the men's and women's 200m. For the women, Shaniya Benjamin briefly beat her own record with a 23.81, before Allers-Liburd topped it by running a 23.71. Allers-Liburd would finish second and Benjamin third. Terren Peterson finished fifth but ran the fourth-best event time (23.91) in women's program history. For the men, Shevioe Reid ran the fastest 200m time in men's program history, (20.67) to finish first, while Zayquan Lincoln ran the second fastest ever (21.02) and came in second. Dyges would finish eighth but his 200m time (21.35) was the fifth-best in program history, while Croal would finish twelfth but have the sixth-fastest time in South Florida men's 200m history.

In the men's 400m, Jones set a program record (47.08) and finished first. Daunte O'Banion finished third and his time (47.65) was good for the sixth fastest in South Florida men's 400m history, while Nathan Metelus finished fourth (47.94) and ran the ninth fastest.

The women's 800m saw Amenda Saint-Louis run (2:13.04) the seventh fastest 400m time in women's program history. Saint-Louis also was a part of the women's 4x400m relay team that took first and set a program record time (3:35.19), along with Peterson, Burton, and Benjamin. The Men's 4x400m relay team of Shevioe Reid, O'Banion, Jones, and Metelus also took first with their time (3:07.78), running the second-fastest men's 4x400m relay time in program history.

In the field, Annia Ashley finished third in the women's high jump, clearing 1.65m.

Celebration Pointe Indoor Classic

The track day began with a win for the Bulls. Delaney Stephens came in first (2:59.09) in the women's 1,000m and Alyssa Wyatt finished third (3:01.30). Later in the men's 3,000m Nickolas Kamen finished in second place (8:27.29), his time ranks third best in program history within the event.

In the field, the men's pole vault took the top two podium spots. Kobe Babin finished first, having cleared 5.17m, while Noah Bitter finished second, establishing a new personal record of 5.02m, now sitting alone in ninth place in program history within the event. In the women's pole vault Ella Dolce took second (3.85m) and Madeline Dutz finished third (3.55m). Molie Jean Baptiste finished first the women's high jump in her South Florida debut. In the women's weight toss, Alliya Boothe finished third (17.07m).

On Saturday, Jasmyn James thrust the third-longest throw in women's shot put program history (15.00m) and took third place.

 About USF Track and Field
The USF track and field team has earned 56 All-America selections and at least one All-American in 10 of the last 12 years, including a record eight athletes claiming 11 honors in 2021. Romaine Beckford won the 2023 NCAA Indoor and Outdoor Championships in the men's high jump. Tampa native Shaniya Benjamin set a program record earning three All-American honors during the 2021 outdoor season, while triple jumper Matthew O'Neal, a 2016 graduate, became USF's first six-time NCAA All-American. Bulls have posted two NCAA runner-up finishes since 2013 - O'Neal (triple jump, 2016) and Courtney Anderson (high jump, 2013). Head coach Erik Jenkins took over the program in 2020 and in the 2021 outdoor season the Bulls posted seven program records and 40 top 10 all-time program marks. USF hosted the 2018 NCAA Track and Field East Preliminary and the 2021 AAC Outdoor Championship at the USF Track and Field Stadium located on the east end of campus.

– #GoBulls –