The University of Mississippi Athletics
Rebel Women Punch Six National Tickets on Second Day of NCAA East Regional
5/27/2021 | Track and Field
<i class="icon-stats"></i> Live Results<i class="icon-pencil"></i> Day One Recap<i class="icon-pencil"></i> Preview & Links
Four Also Advanced to Saturday Quarterfinals on the Track
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Ole Miss women's track & field could not have asked for much more after a sublime second day of action at the NCAA East Regional, where the Rebels punched six tickets to the outdoor national meet on Thursday.
Jalani Davis continued to impress at a high level in her first outdoor season as a Rebel. The sophomore scored 13 total points at the SEC Championships two weeks ago and came through with a mammoth PR to earn the silver medal in the shot put, but her finest day as a Rebel so far came Thursday in Jacksonville.
Davis opened the day with a dramatic national qualifying performance in the women's hammer, needing her final attempt to punch her ticket to Eugene. She sat outside the qualifying top-12 in 13th place entering her third and final attempt, but on that last trip into the ring Davis held firm and watched one sail 64.48m (211-06) to move her up to 10th place and into the NCAA Championships.
Just a few hours later Davis hit the shot put ring, but this time she didn't mess around. On her first try she let one fly 16.77m (55-00.25), which wound up good for seventh place and a second ticket to Eugene. Davis now joins NCAA Champion and Ole Miss great Janeah Stewart as the lone Rebels to ever qualify for the hammer and shot put in the same season. Stewart did so twice, culminating in a national title in the hammer in 2018.
Davis won't be alone in Eugene in the hammer, though, as All-American Shey Taiwo punched her first career outdoor ticket following a fourth-place finish at 65.93m (216-03). The duo are the first pair of Ole Miss teammates to qualify for the hammer in the same season, and are just the third and fourth Rebels to ever qualify in the event following Stewart (2017, '18) and Juliana Smith (2011).
Lyndsey Reed had the smoothest meet of any Rebel thus far, punching her ticket to Oregon with ease after a flawless day of competition in the women's pole vault. Reed tied for the East Region title at 4.27m (14-00.00) in her first career regional meet, and she did so with a clean jump sheet following first-attempt clearances over all three of her attempted heights. Reed is just the third Rebel to ever qualify for the outdoor national meet, joining Lindsey Murray (2016, '18, '19) and Neal Tisher (2010, '11). Furthermore, when combined with Cole Colozzo's qualifying performance in the men's pole vault on Wednesday, this year will be the first time in Ole Miss history that Rebels have qualified for both the men's and women's editions of the pole vault.
Senior Kieshonna Brooks had the memory of the 2019 regional meet fresh on her mind. On this very track at North Florida, Brooks fell one centimeter short of qualifying for nationals in the long jump, and following the cancelation of the 2020 season due to COVID-19 it was unclear if she would get another shot. Brooks didn't waste her chance, and was able to shatter the formchart in the process.
Brooks entered ranked 34th in the East Region, and ended up finishing 10th to punch her first career ticket to the national meet in storybook fashion. She was the top performer among the first two flights at a sizable wind-legal PR leap of 6.27m (20-07.00) on her third attempt – the sixth-best jump in Ole Miss history and the best since 2012. What followed was an excruciating wait, where she saw her name start to slide down the leaderboard as the higher-seeded third and fourth flights hit the runway. However, by the end of competition she was solidly in as the 10th-place finisher, officially giving her a ticket to Oregon.
Brooks is the first Rebel to qualify in the women's long jump since Olympian Brittney Reese won the 2008 NCAA title outdoors, and coupled with Allen Gordon's long jump ticket on Wednesday, this will be the first time since 2007 that Ole Miss will be represented in both editions.
Ole Miss closed the night with an exciting turn of events in the women's 10K, where Clio Ozanne-Jaques hung with a blisteringly fast front pack to punch her first career ticket to the national meet. Ozanne-Jaques finished fourth at a career-best 33:39.80, which came within less than one second of breaking Emily Bean's 2016 school record of 33:39.36. Thursday night's performance makes Ozanne-Jaques the first Rebel to ever qualify in the women's 10K, and just the second Ole Miss athlete to ever qualify for the 10K aside 1993 NCAA men's runner-up Pablo Sierra.
Four more Rebels also put themselves into position to punch their own tickets to Eugene after advancing to quarterfinals on Thursday night. Brandee Presley finished fourth in Heat One of the 100-meter dash, but her 11.41 (+1.9) was good enough for the second-best time qualifier slot to the quarterfinal. This is Presley's second career quarterfinal 100-meter race after doing so as a freshman in 2019, when she ultimately advanced to Oregon.
Jayda Eckford followed suit in the 200-meter dash, but in more nerve-wracking fashion. Eckford finished seventh in Heat One at a season-best 23.48 (+1.2), but had to wait around for five more heats to see if that time would hold up after missing out on one of the top-three automatic spots. By the end of all six trials, though, Eckford's time hung on by two hundredths of a second as the second-to-last time qualifier accepted into Saturday's quarterfinal. This will be familiar territory for Eckford as well, who qualified for the national meet as a freshman in 2019.
That first person two hundredths of a second shy of Eckford, though, was her teammate Brandee Presley. Her 23.50 (+0.7) fell just one hundredth of a second short of the final qualifying spot, which was awarded to Middle Tennessee's Amarachukwu Obi at 23.49 (+0.7) from the same Heat Four race.
The final two Rebel quarterfinalists had similarly anxious waits as Eckford to find out whether they were in or not. Newcomer and indoor All-American Sintayehu Vissa had an eerily comparable experience just before in the 800-meter race. Vissa ran well in a fast Heat One that claimed three of the top six overall times, finishing fourth in the heat at 2:06.07. However, without one of the top-three AQ spots she was left to wait for five more heats to see if her time would hold up. It was tight, but her time ended up two hundredths ahead of the final time qualifier Holly Manning of Delaware (2:06.09), pushing her into Saturday's 800-meter quarterfinal.
Loral Winn didn't have as long of a wait in the 1500-meter race, but she did have the closest call of the day for Ole Miss. Winn finished seventh in Heat Three at 4:20.06, and by the end of the fourth and final heat that time stood as the final time qualifier accepted into the quarterfinal.
The Rebel women will return to the track on Saturday, which means the focus returns to the men on Friday for Day Three action. The Ole Miss men already have two tickets punched to the national meet and have an impressive nine Rebels entered into quarterfinal races Friday in search of more NCAA qualifiers. Competition begins on Friday at noon CT with Allen Gordon in the men's high jump.
Day Two National Qualifiers
Kieshonna Brooks – Women's Long Jump
Jalani Davis – Women's Hammer
Jalani Davis – Women's Shot Put
Clio Ozanne-Jaques – Women's 10K
Lyndsey Reed – Women's Pole Vault
Shey Taiwo – Women's Hammer
Day Two Quarterfinalists
Jayda Eckford – Women's 200-Meter Dash
Brandee Presley – Women's 100-Meter Dash
Sintayehu Vissa – Women's 800-Meter
Loral Winn – Women's 1500-Meter
REBELS IN DAY TWO COMPETITION
Women's 100-Meter Dash – First Round
17. Brandee Presley – 11.41q (+1.9)
Women's 200-Meter Dash – First Round
22. Jayda Eckford – 23.48q (+1.2) – SB
24. Brandee Presley – 23.50 (+0.7)
Women's 800-Meter – First Round
23. Sintayehu Vissa – 2:06.07q
Women's 1500-Meter – First Round
18. Loral Winn – 4:20.06q
30. Anna Elkin – 4:22.28
44. Skylar Boogerd – 4:34.39
Women's 10K – Semifinal
4. Clio Ozanne-Jaques – 33:39.80 – NCAA Qualifier, PR, No. 2 all-time
22. Victoria Simmons – 34:51.47
Women's 100-Meter Hurdles – First Round
40. Kieshonna Brooks – 13.63 (+3.0)
Women's Pole Vault
T1. Lyndsey Reed – 4.27m/14-00.00 – NCAA Qualifier
18. Samara McConnell – 4.07m/13-04.25
Women's Long Jump
10. Kieshonna Brooks – 6.27m/20-07.00 (+1.3) – NCAA Qualifier, PR, No. 6 all-time
Women's Shot Put
7. Jalani Davis – 16.77m/55-00.25 – NCAA Qualifier
23. Jasmine Mitchell – 15.64m/51-03.75
34. Tedreauna Britt – 15.33m/50-03.50
Women's Hammer
4. Shey Taiwo – 65.93m/216-03 – NCAA Qualifier
10. Jalani Davis – 64.48m/211-06 – NCAA Qualifier
18. Jasmine Mitchell – 60.77m/199-04
45. Deborah Bulai – 53.88m/176-09
-----
Day One National Qualifiers
Cole Colozzo – Men's Pole Vault
Allen Gordon – Men's Long Jump
Day One Quarterfinalists
Cade Bethmann – Men's 1500-Meter
Kenney Broadnax – Men's 110-Meter Hurdles
Elijah Dryer – Men's 200-Meter Dash
Baylor Franklin – Men's 800-Meter
Mario Garcia Romo – Men's 1500-Meter
Dalton Hengst – Men's 1500-Meter
John Rivera Jr. – Men's 800-Meter
Everett Smulders – Men's 800-Meter
Waleed Suliman – Men's 1500-Meter
REBELS IN DAY ONE COMPETITION
Men's 200-Meter Dash – First Round
14. Elijah Dryer – 20.84 (+2.1) – AQ, PR, No. 11 all-time
Men's 800-Meter – First Round
4. John Rivera Jr. – 1:48.46 (AQ)
13. Everett Smulders – 1:49.36q
17. Baylor Franklin – 1:49.70 (AQ)
Men's 1500-Meter – First Round
2. Mario Garcia Romo – 3:42.80 (AQ)
6. Waleed Suliman – 3:43.75 (AQ)
17. Cade Bethmann – 3:44.47 (AQ)
23. Dalton Hengst – 3:44.97q
29. Michael Coccia – 3:46.43
Men's 110-Meter Hurdles – First Round
15. Kenney Broadnax – 13.77 (+2.2) – PR, No. 5 all-time
Men's Pole Vault
6. Cole Colozzo – 5.25m/17-02.75 – NCAA Qualifier, SB
14. Peyton Weissmann – 5.25m/17-02.75 – SB
Men's Long Jump
5. Allen Gordon – 7.65m/25-01.25 (+0.9) – NCAA Qualifier
Men's Shot Put
14. Daniel Viveros – 18.56m/60-10.75 – 6-inch PR, No. 2 all-time
Men's Hammer
33. Joseph Benedetto – 59.48m/195-02
For more information on Ole Miss Track & Field and Cross Country, follow the Rebels on Twitter (@OleMissTrack), Facebook and Instagram.
Jalani Davis continued to impress at a high level in her first outdoor season as a Rebel. The sophomore scored 13 total points at the SEC Championships two weeks ago and came through with a mammoth PR to earn the silver medal in the shot put, but her finest day as a Rebel so far came Thursday in Jacksonville.
Davis opened the day with a dramatic national qualifying performance in the women's hammer, needing her final attempt to punch her ticket to Eugene. She sat outside the qualifying top-12 in 13th place entering her third and final attempt, but on that last trip into the ring Davis held firm and watched one sail 64.48m (211-06) to move her up to 10th place and into the NCAA Championships.
Just a few hours later Davis hit the shot put ring, but this time she didn't mess around. On her first try she let one fly 16.77m (55-00.25), which wound up good for seventh place and a second ticket to Eugene. Davis now joins NCAA Champion and Ole Miss great Janeah Stewart as the lone Rebels to ever qualify for the hammer and shot put in the same season. Stewart did so twice, culminating in a national title in the hammer in 2018.
Davis won't be alone in Eugene in the hammer, though, as All-American Shey Taiwo punched her first career outdoor ticket following a fourth-place finish at 65.93m (216-03). The duo are the first pair of Ole Miss teammates to qualify for the hammer in the same season, and are just the third and fourth Rebels to ever qualify in the event following Stewart (2017, '18) and Juliana Smith (2011).
Lyndsey Reed had the smoothest meet of any Rebel thus far, punching her ticket to Oregon with ease after a flawless day of competition in the women's pole vault. Reed tied for the East Region title at 4.27m (14-00.00) in her first career regional meet, and she did so with a clean jump sheet following first-attempt clearances over all three of her attempted heights. Reed is just the third Rebel to ever qualify for the outdoor national meet, joining Lindsey Murray (2016, '18, '19) and Neal Tisher (2010, '11). Furthermore, when combined with Cole Colozzo's qualifying performance in the men's pole vault on Wednesday, this year will be the first time in Ole Miss history that Rebels have qualified for both the men's and women's editions of the pole vault.
Senior Kieshonna Brooks had the memory of the 2019 regional meet fresh on her mind. On this very track at North Florida, Brooks fell one centimeter short of qualifying for nationals in the long jump, and following the cancelation of the 2020 season due to COVID-19 it was unclear if she would get another shot. Brooks didn't waste her chance, and was able to shatter the formchart in the process.
Brooks entered ranked 34th in the East Region, and ended up finishing 10th to punch her first career ticket to the national meet in storybook fashion. She was the top performer among the first two flights at a sizable wind-legal PR leap of 6.27m (20-07.00) on her third attempt – the sixth-best jump in Ole Miss history and the best since 2012. What followed was an excruciating wait, where she saw her name start to slide down the leaderboard as the higher-seeded third and fourth flights hit the runway. However, by the end of competition she was solidly in as the 10th-place finisher, officially giving her a ticket to Oregon.
Brooks is the first Rebel to qualify in the women's long jump since Olympian Brittney Reese won the 2008 NCAA title outdoors, and coupled with Allen Gordon's long jump ticket on Wednesday, this will be the first time since 2007 that Ole Miss will be represented in both editions.
Ole Miss closed the night with an exciting turn of events in the women's 10K, where Clio Ozanne-Jaques hung with a blisteringly fast front pack to punch her first career ticket to the national meet. Ozanne-Jaques finished fourth at a career-best 33:39.80, which came within less than one second of breaking Emily Bean's 2016 school record of 33:39.36. Thursday night's performance makes Ozanne-Jaques the first Rebel to ever qualify in the women's 10K, and just the second Ole Miss athlete to ever qualify for the 10K aside 1993 NCAA men's runner-up Pablo Sierra.
Four more Rebels also put themselves into position to punch their own tickets to Eugene after advancing to quarterfinals on Thursday night. Brandee Presley finished fourth in Heat One of the 100-meter dash, but her 11.41 (+1.9) was good enough for the second-best time qualifier slot to the quarterfinal. This is Presley's second career quarterfinal 100-meter race after doing so as a freshman in 2019, when she ultimately advanced to Oregon.
Jayda Eckford followed suit in the 200-meter dash, but in more nerve-wracking fashion. Eckford finished seventh in Heat One at a season-best 23.48 (+1.2), but had to wait around for five more heats to see if that time would hold up after missing out on one of the top-three automatic spots. By the end of all six trials, though, Eckford's time hung on by two hundredths of a second as the second-to-last time qualifier accepted into Saturday's quarterfinal. This will be familiar territory for Eckford as well, who qualified for the national meet as a freshman in 2019.
That first person two hundredths of a second shy of Eckford, though, was her teammate Brandee Presley. Her 23.50 (+0.7) fell just one hundredth of a second short of the final qualifying spot, which was awarded to Middle Tennessee's Amarachukwu Obi at 23.49 (+0.7) from the same Heat Four race.
The final two Rebel quarterfinalists had similarly anxious waits as Eckford to find out whether they were in or not. Newcomer and indoor All-American Sintayehu Vissa had an eerily comparable experience just before in the 800-meter race. Vissa ran well in a fast Heat One that claimed three of the top six overall times, finishing fourth in the heat at 2:06.07. However, without one of the top-three AQ spots she was left to wait for five more heats to see if her time would hold up. It was tight, but her time ended up two hundredths ahead of the final time qualifier Holly Manning of Delaware (2:06.09), pushing her into Saturday's 800-meter quarterfinal.
Loral Winn didn't have as long of a wait in the 1500-meter race, but she did have the closest call of the day for Ole Miss. Winn finished seventh in Heat Three at 4:20.06, and by the end of the fourth and final heat that time stood as the final time qualifier accepted into the quarterfinal.
The Rebel women will return to the track on Saturday, which means the focus returns to the men on Friday for Day Three action. The Ole Miss men already have two tickets punched to the national meet and have an impressive nine Rebels entered into quarterfinal races Friday in search of more NCAA qualifiers. Competition begins on Friday at noon CT with Allen Gordon in the men's high jump.
Day Two National Qualifiers
Kieshonna Brooks – Women's Long Jump
Jalani Davis – Women's Hammer
Jalani Davis – Women's Shot Put
Clio Ozanne-Jaques – Women's 10K
Lyndsey Reed – Women's Pole Vault
Shey Taiwo – Women's Hammer
Day Two Quarterfinalists
Jayda Eckford – Women's 200-Meter Dash
Brandee Presley – Women's 100-Meter Dash
Sintayehu Vissa – Women's 800-Meter
Loral Winn – Women's 1500-Meter
REBELS IN DAY TWO COMPETITION
Women's 100-Meter Dash – First Round
17. Brandee Presley – 11.41q (+1.9)
Women's 200-Meter Dash – First Round
22. Jayda Eckford – 23.48q (+1.2) – SB
24. Brandee Presley – 23.50 (+0.7)
Women's 800-Meter – First Round
23. Sintayehu Vissa – 2:06.07q
Women's 1500-Meter – First Round
18. Loral Winn – 4:20.06q
30. Anna Elkin – 4:22.28
44. Skylar Boogerd – 4:34.39
Women's 10K – Semifinal
4. Clio Ozanne-Jaques – 33:39.80 – NCAA Qualifier, PR, No. 2 all-time
22. Victoria Simmons – 34:51.47
Women's 100-Meter Hurdles – First Round
40. Kieshonna Brooks – 13.63 (+3.0)
Women's Pole Vault
T1. Lyndsey Reed – 4.27m/14-00.00 – NCAA Qualifier
18. Samara McConnell – 4.07m/13-04.25
Women's Long Jump
10. Kieshonna Brooks – 6.27m/20-07.00 (+1.3) – NCAA Qualifier, PR, No. 6 all-time
Women's Shot Put
7. Jalani Davis – 16.77m/55-00.25 – NCAA Qualifier
23. Jasmine Mitchell – 15.64m/51-03.75
34. Tedreauna Britt – 15.33m/50-03.50
Women's Hammer
4. Shey Taiwo – 65.93m/216-03 – NCAA Qualifier
10. Jalani Davis – 64.48m/211-06 – NCAA Qualifier
18. Jasmine Mitchell – 60.77m/199-04
45. Deborah Bulai – 53.88m/176-09
-----
Day One National Qualifiers
Cole Colozzo – Men's Pole Vault
Allen Gordon – Men's Long Jump
Day One Quarterfinalists
Cade Bethmann – Men's 1500-Meter
Kenney Broadnax – Men's 110-Meter Hurdles
Elijah Dryer – Men's 200-Meter Dash
Baylor Franklin – Men's 800-Meter
Mario Garcia Romo – Men's 1500-Meter
Dalton Hengst – Men's 1500-Meter
John Rivera Jr. – Men's 800-Meter
Everett Smulders – Men's 800-Meter
Waleed Suliman – Men's 1500-Meter
REBELS IN DAY ONE COMPETITION
Men's 200-Meter Dash – First Round
14. Elijah Dryer – 20.84 (+2.1) – AQ, PR, No. 11 all-time
Men's 800-Meter – First Round
4. John Rivera Jr. – 1:48.46 (AQ)
13. Everett Smulders – 1:49.36q
17. Baylor Franklin – 1:49.70 (AQ)
Men's 1500-Meter – First Round
2. Mario Garcia Romo – 3:42.80 (AQ)
6. Waleed Suliman – 3:43.75 (AQ)
17. Cade Bethmann – 3:44.47 (AQ)
23. Dalton Hengst – 3:44.97q
29. Michael Coccia – 3:46.43
Men's 110-Meter Hurdles – First Round
15. Kenney Broadnax – 13.77 (+2.2) – PR, No. 5 all-time
Men's Pole Vault
6. Cole Colozzo – 5.25m/17-02.75 – NCAA Qualifier, SB
14. Peyton Weissmann – 5.25m/17-02.75 – SB
Men's Long Jump
5. Allen Gordon – 7.65m/25-01.25 (+0.9) – NCAA Qualifier
Men's Shot Put
14. Daniel Viveros – 18.56m/60-10.75 – 6-inch PR, No. 2 all-time
Men's Hammer
33. Joseph Benedetto – 59.48m/195-02
For more information on Ole Miss Track & Field and Cross Country, follow the Rebels on Twitter (@OleMissTrack), Facebook and Instagram.
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