NORFOLK, Va. – Coppin State's
Latifa Ali won the 400m dash, helped the Eagles take the silver in both relays and took the bronze in the 200m dash in the final day of the MEAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Saturday afternoon at Dick Price Stadium. In the team standings, Coppin finished fourth overall with 70 total points.
A sophomore from Kumasi, Ghana, Ali won the 400m dash easily in a personal-record 52.82 which is the second-fastest time in CSU history, and the fastest by an Eagles runner in exactly 28 years. Ali's time ranks in the Top 50 nationally and should qualify her for the NCAA East Preliminaries later this month.
Ali led off the 4x100m Relay to open the day, and her along with
Halutie Hor,
Kimani Alphonse and
Cathryn Lane took second in a school-record 45.80. She also ran a leg of the 4x400m Relay with Alphonse,
Salomay Agyei and
Shenelle Tomlinson that took second in 3:37.34 in the final event of the day.
Amid those events, Ali rebounded from a slow start in the 200m dash but still managed to take the bronze in 23.80. Finishing just behind her in the 200m was Hor in fifth place at 24.07.
Ali was one of four different Eagles to score points in the 400m dash as Alphonse took fourth in a personal-record 53.95. Tomlinson finished sixth in 55.03 followed by Agyei in seventh at 56.67.
Kaelyn Woodrum medaled in the 400m hurdles, taking the bronze in a personal record 1:03.04 with
Destinee Mcleod taking seventh in 1:06.05.
Kamillah Monroque doubled up in middle-distance events, finishing sixth in the 1,500m in 4:54.57 and seventh in the 800m (2:23.45).
Saidai Stuteley also took sixth in the 5,000m in a time of 20:56.01.
The NCAA East Preliminaries are set for May 25-28 in Bloomington, Ind., where athletes who rank among the top 48 in their respective events earn a berth. In addition, the best 24 relays times advance to the NCAA preliminary rounds.
