RALEIGH, N.C. (March 28) – National powerhouse Saint Augustine’s University will showcase its track & field talents in the prestigious Florida Relays this weekend.
One of the nation’s top track & field meets, the Florida Relays is scheduled for Thursday, March 28, through Saturday March 30, at Percy Beard Track in Gainesville, Fla. The starting times are 2 p.m. on Thursday, 9:30 a.m. on Friday and 9 a.m. on Saturday.
Follow the meet via live stats HERE or go to floridagators.com or saintaugfalcons.com. Click HERE to watch live video of the meet or go to SEC Network + on ESPN.com from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday and 2:30 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. on Saturday.
Saint Augustine’s is one of many nationally-ranked teams competing in the meet. The SAU men are ranked fourth in the nation and the SAU women are ranked 13th nationally this week in the latest NCAA Division II poll released by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. The Falcons and Lady Falcons will compete against a loaded field, which includes 18 nationally-ranked Division I men’s and women’s teams including defending national men’s outdoor champion Georgia.
The SAU program has won 39 NCAA Division II national titles in the indoor and outdoor seasons combined. The legendary George Williams has captured the most NCAA track & field championships of any coach, regardless of division.
Nine SAU individuals and two relay teams are ranked among the top 10 nationally in Division II. For the men, Darren Alfred (Fr./Bethel, Trinidad & Tobago) ranks third and Brandon Parris (Sr./Sion Hill, St. Vincent) ranks fourth in the 400 dash. Najair Jackson (So./Spanish Town, Jamaica) ranks third in the javelin and Nathan Fergusson (Fr./St. Thomas, Barbados) ranks fourth in the 400 hurdles.
Christian Smith (Sr./Atlanta, GA) ranks ninth in both the 110 hurdles and 400 hurdles. The team of Fergusson, Jalen Jones (Fr./Raeford, NC), Alfred and Parris leads the nation in the 4×400 relay.
In the women’s events, Shannon Kalawan (Jr./Westmoreland, Jamaica) leads the nation in the 400 dash and Amanda Crawford (Jr./Brooklyn, NY) ranks seventh in the 400. Danielle Scantlebury (Fr./St. George, Barbados) ranks eighth in the 100 hurdles and Jaria Hoyte (Fr./St. Phillip, Barbados) ranks 10th in the 400 dash. The unit of Davia Smith (Jr./Manchester, Jamaica), Hoyte, Scantlebury and Crawford ranks fourth in the 4×400 relay.
For more information about the Florida Relays, go to floridagators.com.
–Office of Sports Information
