J’can Linton cops triple gold at intercollegiate outdoor meet

FORMER Hydel High and St Jago High athlete Machaeda Linton of William Carey University was a triple gold medallist at last weekend’s National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Outdoor Track and Field National Championships held at Indiana Wesleyan University.

Linton, a freshman who also won a bronze in the 100m, won the long/ triple jump double and was part of the women’s 4x100m relay team that won the gold, along with 100m hurdles champion Salieci Myles.

Linton, a finalist in the women’s triple jump at last year’s World Athletics Under 20 championships in Cali, Colombia, jumped a wind-aided 5.90m (2.7m/s) to win the long jump.

She later returned to win the triple jump with 12.52m (0.2m/s).

Myles, the former Edwin Allen and Rusea’s High representative, added the outdoor sprint hurdles title to her indoor 60m crown when she ran a personal best 13.28 seconds (1.6m/s) while Gizel Clayton of Central Methodist University was second in 13.38 seconds.

Linton was third in the 100m in a lifetime best 11.71 (0.5m/s) while Myles was sixth in 11.80 seconds.

Former Mt Alvernia High runner Soyinne Grenyion of Indiana Tech was sixth in the women’s 400m in 55.08 seconds while former Calabar High thrower Deandre Leith of Colombia International was fifth in the men’s shot put with 16.75m.

Meanwhile at the NCAA Division II Outdoors Championships held at Colorado State University-pueblo, Maricia Spence of Angelo State was second in the heptathlon with a personal best 5553 points and seventh in the women’s long jump with 6.11m (0.3m/s).

Shenese Walker of Lincoln University (Mo) was third in the women’s 100m in a wind-aided 11.10 seconds (5.6m/s).

Robin Black of the Academy of Art was third in the men’s 400m hurdles, running 50.23 seconds, and was seventh in the 100m in a wind-aided 10.10 seconds (5.4m/s).

Shadae Findley of Angelo State was third in the women’s 400m hurdles in 53.43 seconds.