Fayetteville State Wins First CIAA Women’s Indoor Track & Field Championship
Winston-Salem, NC – Fayetteville State University captured 123 points at the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Indoor Track & Field Championships for its first-ever women's title.
The Broncos, who led by ten points over defending Champion Virginia State after the first day competition, held on to win over Saint Augustine's (91), Virginia State (83), and Winston-Salem State (76).
FSU Head Coach Inez Turner was chosen as the CIAA Women's Coach of the Year. The Broncos' Shania Ingram and Alisha St. Louis of Johnson C. Smith were named the field events' co-women's MVP winners.
Fayetteville State finished with 11 top-three podium finishes.
Shania Ingram won the most medal for the Broncos with four top-three performances. She bought home the gold with a victory in the pentathlon with 3,241 points and won the long jump with a leap of 18' 8". Ingram finished second in the high jump, clearing 5' 2.25", and was a member of the bronze medal 4x400-meter relay squad (4:00.15).
Senior sprinter and CIAA Women's Track Athlete of the Year Jerinique Brooks captured both 60-meter and 200-meter titles. She won the gold medal in the 60 with a time of 7.56 seconds and the 200 with a NCAA Automatic Qualifying time of 24.27 seconds. She was also a leg on the 4x400.
Shanae Ingram and Aleena Cruz finished second and third in the 800 meters for a podium spot. Ingram won the silver in 2:23.84 and Cruz received the bronze with a time of 2:24.26.
Mercy Chemutai won the bronze medal in the 3,000 meters with a clocked time of 11:17.16.
The distance medley relay finished third by way of Chemutai, Cruz, Bianca Belfon, and Carisha Leonard running a time of 12:58.81.
M'Smrya Seward finished second in the triple jump with a hop, skip, and jump of 38' 4".
Fayetteville State has been sponsoring women's track and field for the past two seasons. FSU finished third in last year's championships.
Coach Turner has earned three consecutive CIAA Cross Country Coach of the Year awards and has earned her first Indoor Coach of the Year award at Fayetteville State.
Before converting the team over to the outdoor season, Fayetteville State will prepare several student-athletes for the Division II NCAA National Championships. Jerinique Brooks is ranked No. 2 in the 200 meters and No. 11 in the 60. Mya Johnson, who is ranked 22nd in the 200 meters and 23rd in the 400 meters, will hope to make the competing list. The 4x400 meter squad is ranked 11th overall. Shania Ingram win in the long jump was a provisional qualifying mark for the nationals. She is ranked 31st.
The Broncos will compete at the University of South Carolina on February 21 as a last chance to improve its rankings for the NCAA Nationals.