DES MOINES, IOWA -- The future of the North Carolina A&T female track and field program received another boost of confidence at the USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Drake Stadium. Meanwhile, on the men's side, the Aggies got one last look at one of the best sprinters in school history.
Freshman Jenea McCammon advanced to the junior women's 400 meter hurdle finals, while senior Calesio Newman advanced to the men's 100 and 200 meter semifinals.
McCammon, a freshman out of Greenbelt Md., made school history during her time at the U.S. Championships. In the first round, she ran the 400 meter hurdles in 1:00.71 to finish fourth and qualify for the final. She became the first freshman in school history to qualify for a national final. In the final, McCammon ran a 1:02.78 to finish sixth.
"Jenea has a chance to be one of the best 400 meter hurdlers to come through North Carolina A&T,'' said James Daniels, N.C. A&T's associate head coach for track and field programs. "Even though she didn't run a clean race in terms of her stutter stepping over 8 out of the 10 hurdles, she has the desire to make tremendous strides over the next three years."
Daniels' star sprinter ran his last four races for N.C. A&T. Newman's first effort at the event resulted in him qualifying for the 100 meter semifinal by running a 10.51. He followed that performance with a 10.73 in the semifinals. The time was not good enough to advance to a finals race that included Olympians.
After completing his career as a 100 meter runner at N.C. A&T, Newman embarked on trying to make the world team in the 200 meters. A time of 21.19 allowed him to move on to the semifinals, where he ran a 20.99. Newman's time was not among the top eight, thus ending a career that included four MEAC outdoor titles, four NCAA regional appearances, three NCAA outdoor appearances, two USA outdoor appearances and one MEAC indoor title.
"Calesio is one of the most highly decorated athletes to participate at A&T, regardless of sport,'' said Daniels. "I believe he would have competed at a higher level, but he took some time off from training to finish up his college degree, which is the most important thing."
Senior jumper David McFadgen also saw his career come to an end in Iowa. McFadgen finished 16th in the triple jump after jumping 49-feet, 4 ½ inches. McFadgen won the MEAC indoor and outdoor championships in the triple in 2010. He also qualified NCAA regionals twice over his career.
The other men participants were Earl House and Paris Simmons. House ran a 10.63 in the junior men's 100 meters and a 22.10 in the junior men's 200 meters. Simmons ran 2:04.04 in the 800.
Additional up and coming track stars competed on the women's side. In addition to McCammon's performance, freshman Sherice Walker ran a 14.33 in the 100 meter hurdles. Sophomore Ruth Hunt finished the 200 meters with a time of 24.99.
