WS Chronicle

In photo above: Tajanel McNeill closed out her college career as a 5-time All-American. (Photo by Craig T. Greenlee)

 
In the days leading up to the NCAA Division II Outdoor National Track & Field Championships, Coach Inez Turner of Winston-Salem State created a mantra of sorts in the collective mindset of her team. Her talks didn’t place heavy emphasis on final outcomes. Instead, she repeatedly reminded the ladies that they would be best served by focusing solely on their performances in the preliminary rounds.

“At a national championship meet, the key is to make it to the finals,” said Turner, a former college national champion and world-class middle-distance runner. “Once you make it to that final round, anything can happen.”

The women listened and they prospered. Winston-Salem State delivered several stellar performances at the nationals held last week in Allendale, Mich. In the team standings, the Lady Rams tallied 18 points to finish tied for 12th in the country, the best in school history. Seven of the eight WSSU athletes who qualified for the nationals placed among the top nine to earn All-America honors.

“The day went extremely well,” said Turner. “We came in ranked 26th (as a team) and ended up 12th. That’s a big step for us. It’s a strong indication that the program is headed in the right direction. Not only is this is a boost for the ladies who made All-American, but it provides added motivation for those team members who didn’t qualify for nationals this year.”

WSSU’s best showing came in the 4×100 relay. For the second year in a row, the Lady Rams finished as the national runners-up. Tajanel McNeill, Nya Michaux, Raven Covington and Ty-Leah Hampton clocked their best time of the season (45.5 seconds) in spite of having problems with baton exchanges. Entering last week, WSSU was ranked fourth nationally in this event.

“They were far from perfect with the baton and yet, they still ran 45.5,” said Turner. “As coaches, we preach all the time that there’s no reason to panic if things don’t go smoothly with baton passes. They stayed calm and they executed.”

In the 4×400 relay, the Lady Rams have taken a quantum leap. The foursome of Ro’Daijah Faucette, Raven Hamilton, Hampton and Tametris Morrison posted a surprise fifth-place finish with a time of 3 minutes, 43.64 seconds. Prior to the nationals, they were No. 9 in the country.

Turner is excited about the possibilities for this relay event in the years to come. All four runners are sophomores who have two more years of college eligibility remaining. “This group came to the nationals with a hunger to do well,” she said. “They were so determined that they would run fast enough to make it to the podium and be recognized as All-Americans.”

Morrison, who anchored the 4×400, turned in the top individual finish for the Lady Rams. She finished fifth in the 400-meter hurdles with career-best time of 59.22 seconds “Tametris was awesome,” said Turner. “There was no question that she really wanted it (All-America status).  She’s all heart and guts. The way she performed at the nationals is just the beginning. Next year, I’m expecting greater things from her.”

McNeill closed out her college career as a 5-time All-American (indoors and outdoors) at WSSU. She ran the lead leg on 4×100 and placed seventh in the triple jump (40-feet, 3 ½ inches).

Covington, this year’s CIAA indoor champion at 60 meters, was ninth in the 100-meter dash (11.82). Based on what transpired in the preliminary round, she was expected to post a higher finish. Covington, ranked 19th before the nationals, ran a personal best of 11.55 in the prelims, which is also a new school record.

In the 100 finals, though, a recurring arm injury which has hampered Covington all season surfaced. As a result, she wasn’t able to run up to her capability. “I’m not making excuses,” said Turner. “But Raven hasn’t had the opportunity to compete a full season without injury, so that’s something that we’ll continue to work on. Raven has overcome the odds. A year ago, she ran 12.1 in the 100 and now she’s much improved.”