EIGHT IS ENOUGH

A&T's men matched its four straight MEAC indoor titles with its fourth straight MEAC outdoor title. The Aggies will leave for the Big South next season.

Kevin L. Dorsey

Javonte Harding won the 100 and 200m along with the 4x100 and 4x400-meter relays.

Track & Field | 5/8/2021 9:02:00 PM

EAST GREENSBORO – The North Carolina A&T men's outdoor track and field team won its fourth straight Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) championship on at Truist Stadium on N.C. A&T's Irwin Belk Track on Saturday.

Senior superstars such as Trevor Stewart, Aaron Wilkerson and Mar'Quise McGee do not know what it is like not to win a conference championship. It looks as if they are ready to pass on that winning tradition to the Aggies youth movement.

In competing in their final MEAC outdoor championship before joining the Big South Conference in July, the Aggie men used freshmen Randolph Ross, Jr. and Javonte Harding to score a conference-record 288 points. The men won the school's seventh outdoor championship.

Harding earned the most outstanding male track athlete by winning the 100 and 200 meters. He was also a part of the gold medal-winning 4x100 and 4x400-meter relay teams. Ross Jr. and Stewart continued their inner-team rivalry in the 400m. Saturday's showdown went to Ross Jr. after Stewart won their previous two outdoor matchups this season.

The Aggies also claimed gold in the 110 and 400-meter hurdles, the 1500m, the 800m and the 5000m. The Aggie men have won every MEAC track and field championship – indoor and outdoor – since 2017.

"For the kids to come here and put on the performance that they did, especially dealing with COVID over the past year and a half, it's a blessing. My heart is bursting with joy because this is my family. My heart was heavy during this COVID period because people were losing their lives. These kids had to go home with their purpose gone. To be able to see them come out here and do what was necessary to have a season, to be in school, see their teammates again and win, it's incredible, to be honest with you."

The Aggies were faced with even more adversity on Friday when their top 100m runner, junior Tavarius Wright, limped off the track with an injury.

In stepped Harding, whose holder brother Dujuan Harding was a six-time MEAC champion during his time at N.C. A&T. Javonte Harding nursed an injury of his own throughout the outdoor season; therefore, this weekend marked only his third meet this season after making NCAA indoor nationals in the 200m.

Harding did not look hobbled at all on Saturday. He ran a meaningful personal-best 20.21. Harding's performance qualifies him for the Olympic Trials. It is the seventh-fastest time in the world and ranks him sixth in the nation. Harding also ran a personal-best 10.21 in the 100m to win gold.

Duane Ross, the Aggies director of track and field programs, calls Harding the men's track and field program's future. Ross saw Harding compete at the New Balance Outdoor National High School Championships as a senior.

After Harding's race, Ross quickly found Harding's mother to give her a message.

"That kid has a future in this sport if he chooses it," Ross remembers telling her. "He has such composure as a freshman. To see him do this, to come off indoors and come out here in outdoors and do the same thing, that speaks volumes to how much he is going to be the future of this sport."

Harding teamed with senior Akeem Sirleaf, Ross Jr. and junior Daniel Stokes to finish the 4x100 in 39.37. In the last event of the day, he teamed with senior Elijah Young, Sirleaf and Strokes to win the 4x400 in 3:05.97.

"I always tell myself to take it one race at a time," said Harding. "Once I complete a race and celebrate, it's on to the next race. I'm always focused on what I need to do to get better. I'm always ready to get better."

Ross Jr. and Stewart have spent almost two years helping each other get better. Two weeks ago at the Aggie Invitational, Stewart came on late to defeat Ross Jr. in the 400m. Last week at the University of North Florida, both men blazed the track to go under 44.70, with Stewart coming out on top by running a 44.52.

On Saturday, Ross Jr. got off to a tremendous start, and this time, Stewart could not recover. Ross Jr. won the event in a personal-best 44.60. Ross Jr.'s time is fourth in the world. Stewart's 44.52 is second in the world.

"The competition keeps them hungry," said Ross. "The fact that Trevor won last week and junior won this week imagine what the next race is going to look like. Our practice sessions are insane with these guys. They're on another level."

Sophomore Morris Kimble continued to show off the Aggies future in the distance races. After winning the 10000m on Thursday, Kimble returned and won the 5000m on Saturday, finishing at 15:13.31.

Junior Rasheem Brown took home the gold in the 110mh by running a 13.61. He is now ranked 15th in the nation. Fifth-year senior Abbas Abbkar claimed the 800m title with a time of 1:49.65. Abbkar, who transferred to N.C. A&T from Savannah State won his fourth MEAC title as an Aggie.

Junior Regan Kimtai won his ninth overall MEAC title by winning the 1500m at 3:58.46. Abbkar came in second (3:59.21).

Akeem Lindo, another senior who hopes the younger Aggies can keep the winning tradition going, won the 400mh at 51.55. Brandy Felix finished second (52.13).

"We train through this competition," Ross said about the MEAC championships. "There is an importance to winning the MEAC, but we're not going to risk NCAAs for it. Our kids worked hard coming into this competition, so to see them be able to get up for this competition despite training hard the last three weeks gives us a lot to look forward to in the next month."

ALL-MEAC AGGIES

First Team : Javonte Harding (100m, 200m, 4x100, 4x400), Randolph Ross, Jr (400m, 4x100), Abbas Abbkar (800m), Regan Kimtai (1,500m, Javelin), Rasheem Brown (110h), Akeem Lindo (400h), Akeem Sirleaf (4x100, 4x400), Daniel Stokes (4x100, 4x400), Elijah Young (4x400), Morris Kimble (5,000m, 10,000m), Brandon Hicklin (LJ).