GREENSBORO - The knock on the
North Carolina A&T men's and women's track and field programs has been the
lack of dominant distance runners. That criticism could vanish Saturday on the
men's side as Paris Simmons will go for the 800 meters title at the 2012 MEAC
Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
Simmons finished first in his
heat on Friday at Irwin Belk Track with a time of 1:49.18. Simmons' time not
only qualified him for Saturday's final, but it also placed among the top 20
800 meter runners in the country. He also broke a MEAC meet record.
"I am really proud of him," said the
Aggies interim director of track and field programs, James Daniels, about
Simmons. "He has put the work in and has been a pleasure to coach. I think
Paris was beginning to see how good he was last year before his foot injury.
Sitting out for a season because of an injury gives you the drive that only
trials and tribulations can achieve. His trials have motivated him to do well
this season."
It was an outstanding day for
Simmons who ran a 1:51.32 in the men's 800 meters at the University of South
Carolina. At the International Friendship and Freedom Games, he worked his time
down to 1:50.58. But on Friday, he finally got his time under 1:50.00,
finishing better than any other competitor who ran the 800 on Friday. Senior
Danzeto Cephas, the 2011 800 meter MEAC champion, is also in Saturday's final.
Simmons leads a multitude of
A&T men's runners who will participate in finals on Saturday. Sprinter Jarrell
Elliott, who earned a spot in the 200 meter final on Thursday, ran a 46.65 in the
400 meter preliminary round. He was six/tenths of a second off the pace of
Bethune-Cookman's Stephon Pamilton, who had the best time of the day.
Torrance Womack looks to score in
three different individual finals for the Aggies on Saturday. He qualified for
the 100 and 400 meter dashes on Friday. His second-place finish in the 200
meter preliminary on Thursday has him that Saturday final as well. Add that to
his relay races on Saturday, and Womack could be responsible for up to 50
points before the championships are over.
"We are in a position to do something
very special tomorrow," said Daniels. "We have a number of people in the
finals, but we have to take it one race at a time. Tomorrow is going to be a
great day for A&T track and field. We have someone in almost every race and
we have everyone in at least one final tomorrow and that is rewarding."
The Aggie men are currently in
seventh place with 16 points. The bulk of the men's points on Friday came from
the long jump. Senior Jared Baldwin led a list of three Aggie jumpers who
finished in the top six in the triple jump, thereby scoring a combined 15 points
for A&T. Baldwin jumped 23-feet, 2 ½ inches, but could not out jump S.C.
State's Zackery Hasty who won the event with a jump of 24-feet, ½-inch. Keenan Smith, Marquis Noble and Kendrick Smith
also scored for A&T in the long jump.
The 100 meter dash should result
in just as much prosperity on Saturday, as the long jump did for the Aggies on
Friday. Three Aggies - Womack, Darryl Williams and Earl House - qualified for
Saturday's final on Friday. Womack led the way with a qualifying time of 10.72,
followed by Williams' 10.75 and House's 10.82. Jeffrey Lewis will make an appearance
in the 110 meter hurdles final on Saturday.
Demetrius Green had the only
other point for the Aggie men on Friday as he finished eighth in the shot put
with a throw of 46-feet, 11-inches.
