Track and Field Concludes Indoor Season with Great Showing in Beantown

3/4/06 --The Long Island University track and field team concluded its successful indoor season on a high note. The men’s team fielded 12 athletes at the IC4A Championships held at Boston University and the women had six qualfy for the ECAC championships held at the Reggie Lewis Center also in Boston this past weekend.

Senior All-American Bryan Steele earned an individual second place finish and the 1600 meter relay unit took second to help the men finish 12th overall in the team standings out of 51 colleges.

Steele’s time of 47.18- a personal best - in the 400 meters qualified him provisionally for the Division I Indoor Championships.

The 1600 meter relay comprised of seniors Mike Hillian Bryan Steele and Jabari Bush and freshman Shavar Clarke- also qualified provisionally for the Division I Indoor Championships with a new school record of 3:10.01. The Division I championships will be held at the University of Arkansas from March 9-11. The list of qualifiers will be announced on Tuesday, March 7, 2006 after 7:00 p.m.

The women’s team was lead by Aisha Thomas’ fifth place finish in the 200 meters. Thomas established a new personal-best of 24.51 in the heats, only to run 24.66 in the finals. Her fifth place finish helped her earn her first All-East Indoor certificate in an indoor event.

The women’s 1600-meter relay also highlighted the meet with its ninth place finish. The team consisted on Junior Janel McFarlane and Shaneqwa Warren, sophomore Aisha Thomas and senior Jaimie Smith.

The Blackbirds are off until March 17, 2006, the next meet will be the Carolina Spring Break Classic on March 18, 2006 in San Juan, Puerto, Rico.