Braves Continue In Second Place In USTFCCCA Region Rankings

NEW ORLEANS – The UNCP men's track and field team held strong to second place in the region rankings for the third consecutive week of the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced on Tuesday after competition at the Johnson C. Smith Invitational.

There was no change from last week as Mount Olive still leads the region in first, while the Black and Gold trail in second with Wingate, King, Anderson (S.C.), Mars Hill, Columbus State, Lees-McRae, Limestone and Lenoir-Rhyne following in order.

Junior Jon Williams contributed with his performance in the 400m dash with a time of 48.25 seconds for a new personal best to put him ahead of the competition with a first place individual ranking in the event. 

The 4x100m relay team of Donta' Allen, Jameel Joyner, Shaquille Ray and Williams NCAA provisionally qualified for the national championships with a time of 41.11 seconds to hold a first place standing in the event.

D'Andre Weaver captured a mark of 1.98m in the high jump for the first time he has competed in the event in his UNCP career and currently sits sixth in the event.

The Braves will continue competition on Friday and Saturday when the Braves compete at the Lenoir-Rhyne-hosted NCAA Division II Southeast Regional Championships in Hickory on Friday and Saturday.

The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) is the non-profit professional organization that represents men's and women's cross country and track & field coaches in the United States. The organization represents over 8,000 coaching members, including 91% of NCAA coaches. USTFCCCA serves as an advocate for cross country and track & field coaches, providing a leadership structure to assist the needs of a diverse membership, serving as a lobbyist for coaches' interests, and working as a liaison between the various stakeholders in the sports of cross country and track & field.