Track & Field | 4/21/2023 10:00:00 PM
EAST GREENSBORO – For the first time this season, the North Carolina A&T outdoor track and field men's and women's teams have the home track advantage. A&T is hosting the 2023 Aggies Classic at Marcus T. Johnson Track, starting with Friday's action and concluding on Saturday.
Friday's competition started favorably for the A&T men. Sophomore thrower Carlos Alexander led the men's discus with a personal-best throw of 174-feet, 11-inches, dominating all of his competitors by at least 20 feet.
Alexander already holds the top rank in the Colonial Athletics Association (CAA), so his performance puts more distance between him and his competitors. Taking second place in the event was teammate Brayden Hodgest with a launch of 153-feet, 3-inches. Hodgest is ranked No. 3 in the conference.
Aeneas Reed scored another win for the men. Friday was Reed's first time competing this season, and the sophomore may have jumped straight to No. 1 in the CAA with a long jump of 23-feet, 9-inches. Reed's new outdoor record is enough to overtake the current No. 1 spot. Monmouth's David Strong held the top spot coming into the weekend at 23-feet, 6 ¼-inches.
Two more top-five performances came in the men's 400-meter hurdles. Graduate Akeem Lindo (52.57) and freshman Thomas Smith (54.10) finished third and fifth in the race. Lindo is No. 1 in the CAA, and Smith ranks fourth.
Like the men, the women also started favorably in the discus. Freshman Taylor Reagor added almost 10 feet to her personal record, taking first place with a throw of 149-feet, 2-inches. Reagor's showing ties her with Chelsea Wallace (Elon), who is in sixth place in the CAA with one more day remaining in weekend competition.
Senior Julieth Nwosu placed second behind Reagor with a toss of 146-feet, 5-inches, but her throw from the Pepsi Florida Relays at the University of Florida (151-feet, 10-inches) already holds the No. 5 spot in the conference.
With 54 runners in the women's 200m event, sophomore Pebbles Scott pulled out a second-place finish and a personal-best 23.83. Scott is ranked No. 6 in the CAA but should ascend after the weekend.
In the women's 1500-meter run, the Aggies claimed three of the top-five performances. Junior Camille Herring (4:44.27), sophomore Ania Campbell (4:51.00), and Love Melton (4:51.83) respectively finished second, third, and fifth in the event.
Saturday's events could potentially have delays due to forecasted thunderstorms. Day 2 of the Classic is scheduled to start at 10 a.m. with the women's hammer throw. Running events are expected to begin at noon, with the semifinals for the women's 100H.
