LEVELLAND — Sweeping the men's and women's NJCAA outdoor national championships a year ago, the South Plains College men's and women's track and field teams will look to defend their titles this week when they travel to Hutchinson, Kansas for the 2022 NJCAA Outdoor Track and Field National Championships at Gowans Stadium.
The top-ranked Texans are led by Alabama signee Chris Robinson, who posted the top all-time NJCAA mark in the men's 400 hurdles at the Texas Tech Corky Classic on April 29, clocking a 49.18. The Texans' Kudakwashe Chadenga enters the meet with the top mark in the men's high jump, clearing 7' 3.25" at the Wes Kittley Invitational on March 17.
Thomas Nieto will be the favorite to win the men's pole vault title, posting the top mark in the country at 17' 9" on March 17 in Abilene. Jeremy Bembridge will be a favorite in the men's 400 meters after running the top time in the NJCAA this season in 45.66 on April 29 in Lubbock. Kimar Farquharson will look to best his time of 1:46.88, posted at the Angelo State David Noble Relays on March 31, and is currently the top time in the NJCAA to date. The Texans also come in as favorites in both the 4x400 and 4x800, posting a blazing 3:06.58 in the 4x400 at the Texas Relays on March 23, and clocked a 7:20.31 in Austin in the 4x800.
The fifth-ranked Lady Texans will look to tack on points on days one and two of the meet in the heptathlon, led by Joniar Thomas who posted the top point total in the NJCAA on March 31 in San Angelo with 5256 points. The Lady Texans put down the top time in the country in the women's 4x400 relay at the Texas Relays on March 23, clocking a 3:41.67.
The Lady Texans will also be a favorite in the women's 4x100, turning in the top time in the country in 45.36 on April 29 in Lubbock. Success Umukoro will look to top her 100-meter season-best of 11.45, which ranks as the second-best time in the country entering the meet. Cemore Donald enters the meet as one of the top women's 800-meter runners in the NJCAA, posting the third-best time in the country in 2:11.65 on April 8 at the Jo Meaker Classic.
Thomas will also look to bring home national gold in the women's long jump, entering the meet with the second-best mark in the NJCAA with a jump of 20' 9". Freshman TaraLee McKarns will look to find her way to the podium in the women's pole vault, posting the third-best mark in the country this season with a clearance of 10' 11.75".
Action is slated to get underway at 9 a.m. on Thursday with the heptathlon, as day one will wrap up with the men's 10k at 7:50 p.m. Day two will begin at 9 a.m. on Friday with the men's decathlon and will wrap up at 5:25 p.m. following the prelims of the men's 4x400 relay. Championship Saturday will kick off at 10 a.m. on Saturday with the men's javelin, and two national championships will be crowned Saturday afternoon following the men's 4x400 relay at 4:25 p.m.
The full meet schedule, as well as the live stream link and live results, can be found at the links below.
Schedule: https://d2o2figo6ddd0g.cloudfront.net/i/u/rwydjbyfovd0h0/2022_schedule.pdf
Live Stream: https://www.njcaa.org/network/landing/index
Live Results: https://live.athletic.net/meets/16323