NMJC Women’s T&F Wins 2023 NJCAA Outdoor Championship
The New Mexico Junior College women's track and field team won their fourth outdoor championship at the 2023 NJCAA DI Women's Outdoor Championships. The T-Birds were victorious in Hobbs, NM by 29.5 points after defeating Cloud County 130.5 to 101 Saturday evening.
This is NMJC's first women's outdoor title since 2019.
The Thunderbirds amassed three individual national champions, 15 individual All-Americans, and two relay All-American squads on the final day.
The T-Birds swept the indoor and outdoor championships for the first time in program history with wins by both the men's and women's track and field teams.
"We are very pleased with this year's performances, it was a true team effort," NMJC track and field head coach Keith Blackwill said. "For this to be possible it took a lot of work and dedication from our athletes."
Deshana Skeete was the first national champion for the T-Birds on Saturday with her 52.00 first-place finish in the 400m. Skeete's NMJC school record bested Western Texas' Grace Obour by .26 seconds.
"Skeete was great in the 400m," Blackwill said. "She ran probably her smartest race of the year."
Anisha Gibbons narrowly won the javelin by .02m over Cloud County's Jessi Brummett with a throw of 45.42m. Gibbons was No. 1 coming into the event and held the NJCAA national record with a 51.27m throw.
"Anisha had a very good win for us," Blackwill said. "It was not her best mark of the year, but it was good enough to win by .02m."
Calisha Taylor was the national champion in the 400mH with her 57.47 school record finish. Taylor edged Hinds Community College's JodyAnn Dixon by .10 seconds to win the event.
"This was the toughest 400m hurdle final that I have seen in years," Blackwill said. "It was right down to the wire. It was a great performance for Calisha. She ran a personal best and set a new school record."
Aaliyah Lindsay was the runner-up in the triple jump with a leap of 12.47M. The sophomore jumper was .13m short of Glendale's national champion jumper Leila Barmore. Lindsay is a two-time All-American in this year's outdoor meet with her earlier fifth-place performance on Thursday in the long jump.
The women's 4x100m relay squad of Ese Awusa, Tijuanique Morton, Kishawna Wallace, and Ashantai Bollers finished in third place with a time of 44.67, enough to move to No. 3 all-time at NMJC.
Letlhogonolo Magoro finished in fourth place in the 1500m with a time of 4:49.65. Magoro followed that race up with a third-place finish in the 800m (2:11.99).
Lacarthea Cooper came in fourth place in the 400m with a time of 53.08. Cooper's next race was the 200m where she finished in 23.45 to claim fifth place. The freshman sprinter was a three-time All-American at the outdoor championships.
Dejona Simpson crossed the finish line in fifth place in the 400m with a time of 54.14 to earn All-American status. Ese Awusa recorded a 13.95 fifth-place finish in the 100mH. Awusa was an All-American in the 100mH and the 4x100m relay.
Tijuanique Morton came in third place after crossing the line in 11.56. Morton's third All-American honor came in the 200m where she ran a 23.79 to earn seventh place. Mickaliliah Vassell earned fifth place in the 400mH with a time of 1:00.91.
Damaris Chewon was the runner-up in the 5000m with a time of 18:09.43. Cloud County's Lucy Ndungu came in first place over Chewon with a time of 17:59.69. Chewon was a two-time All American this week with runner-up finishes in the 10,000m and 5000m.
Carolyne Kimaiyo earned her second All-American honor of the week after coming in fourth place in the 5000m with a time of 18:37.90. Kimaiyo finished in third place Friday morning in the 10,000m.
The women's 4x400m relay team of Jada Martin, Lacarthea Cooper, Dejona Simpson, and Deshana Skeete posted a 3:39.11 runner-up finish in the final race of the meet.
The 2022 season was the year of No. 2. The T-Birds finished in second in indoor, outdoor, cross country, and the half-marathon. The 2023 season has been the year of No. 1 for the Thunderbirds with wins at both the indoor and outdoor championships.
"The returning sophomores were talented last year, and we were just missing a few pieces that could help them get there," Blackwill said. "The coaches did a great job of recruiting the freshmen that could complete that puzzle. "But the returners worked very hard all year long to improve and help us win."
Blackwill said that recruiting is never going to be easy but winning does help alleviate the pitch to incoming athletes.
"I am not sure that it ever gets easier to recruit," Blackwill said. "But these wins will give us more tools to use during recruiting."
The Thunderbirds end the track and field season with four national championships split between the men and women.
The women had three individual national champions, 18 All-Americans, one relay All-American squad, and one national champion relay team at the 2023 NJCAA DI Women's T&F Indoor Championships.
NMJC produced three national champions, 19 individual All-Americans, and three relay All-American squads at the 2023 NJCAA DI Women's T&F Outdoor Championships.
The men had six individual national champions, 16 All-Americans, and one All-American relay team at the 2023 NJCAA DI Men's T&F Indoor Championships.
The T-Birds finished with two national champions, 15 individual All-Americans, and one relay All-American squad at the 2023 NJCAA DI Men's T&F Outdoor Championships.
