The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

SHAVEZ Hart may not have had the type of performance he anticipated in the men’s 200 metres at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships. But he walked away with a bit of history as he helped the Texas A&M Aggies men capture the 4 x 400m relay in grand style.

The event wrapped up on Saturday in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The senior, running a split of 45.80 seconds on the third leg, teamed up with Gregory Coleman (USA-46.52), Bralon Taplin (Grenada-45.12) and Deon Lendore (Trinidad & Tobago-45.33) as the Aggies clocked 3:02.86 to erase the collegiate record of 3:03.20 that A&M set in winning the 2014 SEC title.

In the 200m where he had the previous world-leading time of 20.57, Hart was seventh in 20.89. The race was won by Trayvon Bromell, a sophomore from Baylor, in the new world- leading time of 20.19. Hart’s time has dropped him to third behind Andre De Grasse, a junior at USC, who did 20.26 for second as he trailed Bromell through the finish line over the weekend.

Also at the NCAA Indoors, Latario Collie-Minns, a junior at Texas A&M as well, had the best showing by a Bahamian when he popped a best mark of 16.46 metres or 54-feet for fifth place in the men’s triple. The winning leap was 17.37m (57-0) by Florida’s senior Marquis Dendy.

Tamara Myers, in her double duties for the University of Arkansas, finished seventh in the women’s triple jump with 12.99m (42-7) with the winner, Ciarra Brewer, a senior at Florida, jumping 14.01m (45-11). Myers, in her senior year, was also eighth in the long jump with 6.19m (20-3). Oregon’s junior Jenns Prandini won with 6.65m (21-10).

Tynia Gaither also had double duties for USC. Her best effort came in the 200m where she placed third in her heat in 23.43, but that was only good for 11th overall. She missed out on advancing to the final where the eighth and final spot came from Kamaria Brown, a senior at Texas A&M, in 23.37. Winning the final was Florida’s junior Kyra Jefferson in 22.63.

Gaither, now in her senior year, was also 13th overall in the preliminaries of the women’s 60m after she ran 7.44 for seventh in her heat. The top eight advanced to the final. The final spot went to Aaliyah Brown, a sophomore from Texas A&M, who did 7.29. Remona Burchell, a senior at Alabama, won the title in 7.12.

And rounding out the Bahamian connection at the meet was Devynne Charlton, a sophomore at Purdue. She clocked 8.24 for sixth place in her heat. That placed her 12th overall and out of contention for the final. The eighth and final spot went to Sasha Wallace, a sophomore of Oregon, in 8.18. Kendra Harrison, a senior at Kentucky, won the final in 7.87.

Myers helped Arkansas to win the women’s title with 63 points, while Gaither and USC got 12th. Hart and Collie-Minns teamed up as Texas A&M finished fourth on the men’s side. Charlton was one of two competitors from Purdue to compete, but they didn’t make the top 22 on the scoring chart.

The meet brought the curtain down on the indoor season. The collegiate athletes will now prepare for the outdoor season and the road to the NCAA Championships June 10-13 at the Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.