FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – For the second time this season, the Nova Southeastern University men's and women's team claims three of the four Peach Belt Conference Athlete of the Week awards as announced by the conference office on Monday.
Shakira Bartley and
Sherrelle Jordan swept the women's side, marking the third time this season the women's team has swept the weekly awards. On the men's side
Rohan Mullings was named Track Athlete of the Week for the second time.
"It's a great feeling for these three seniors," said head coach
Bryan Hagopian. "All three of them have performed well this season and have been unstoppable in their events. They've been leaving it all on the track and they look to set the bar high for themselves on Sunday before the national championship at the end of the month."
Bartley highlighted the week with her career day in the triple jump at the Seminole Twilight in Tallahassee, Fla. on Friday. The West Palm Beach, Fla. native became the first athlete in NSU track and field history to automatically qualify for nationals. Bartley hit the automatic qualifying mark in the triple jump at 12.73m.
The jump sets not only a new personal-best by 2.5 feet and school record, but a new all-time Peach Belt Conference Record previously owned by Shorter's Tamala Daley in 2013. At 12.73m, Bartley is a ranked fifth in Division II in the event and becomes the first PBC track & field athlete, in any event, to hit an NCAA automatic mark this year.
Fellow senior, Jordan, claims her fifth weekly award this season after guiding the 4x100m relay team to a first-place finish at the Seminole Twilight. The team set their seventh NCAA provisional time this season at 46.97s and already owns the fastest 4x100 time in the PBC with a 46.22s from the Miami Hurricane Invitational. The two-time All-American also owns a provisional time in the 100 hurdles at 13.62.
Mullings claims his second PBC award after posting a winning time in the 110m hurdles at the Seminole Twilight. The senior won the event in a time of 14.54s, edging out four other competitors. Mullings already owns the fastest 110m time in the league this year with a 14.32s that he set at the PBC, establishing an NCAA provisional mark in the process.
The Sharks will have one more competition, the Aggie Last Chance Meet in Greensboro, N.C. on Sunday, May 14, to gather more national qualifiers before the NCAA Division II Track and Field Championship at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. from Thursday, May 25 to Saturday, May 27.
