DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern Men's and Women's Track teams competed in the second Sunshine State Conference Championships meet taking home two conference championships and a host of podium finishes.
The Lady Sharks came in bronze position in the team standings with 79 points behind Tampa's 169 points and Embry-Riddle's 103 points. NSU placed ahead of Barry in 4
th with its 39 points followed by Lynn, Florida Southern, Saint Leo, Palm Beach Atlantic, and Eckerd.
NSU was highlighted by
Sativa James become the SSC Individual Champion in the 400m and
Leena Saidi taking home gold in the 10,000m.
James brought in a NCAA Qualifying time of 55.11 in the 400m breaking the SSC Meet Record and setting the second fastest time in program history in the event.
That came after
Leena Saidi set the bar with a SSC Championship in the women's 10K crossing the finish line in 36:40.53. It was a strong event for the Sharks as
Jordan Stygar placed fourth in the conference final in just her freshman season.
The Sharks weren't done with their time on the podium as
Rebekah Christie finished second in the 100m dash in 12.16, sandwiched in between two runners from Embry-Riddle.
Sativa James clinched silver in the 200m finishing in 24.87 while Christie scored a team point with an 8
th place finish in the event.
NSU also got a bronze medalist in the women's 800m with
Bella Butler coming in third in the event with a time of 2:11.26.
The Shark women rounded out their conference meet with a third place finish in the 4x400m relay.
The NSU Men placed fifth in team score with 37 points behind SSC champion Tampa with 114 points, Embry-Riddle in second with 110 points, Florida Southern in third with 69 points and Lynn in fourth with 51 points.
The Sharks placed ahead of Florida Tech, Saint Leo, Barry, Eckerd and Palm Beach Atlantic.
Highlighting the men's team was
Jaime Blazquez who clinched conference silver with a second-place finish in the 1500 meter in a time of 3:49.84. Less than half a second behind conference champion Zachary Kehler of Tampa.
The Shark men earned top five finishes in the 400m from
Phillip DiMarco and
Julian Granville, the 5000m from Marcus Tortorella, the 110m-hurdles from
Joseph Pinheiro, the 4x400m relay and the 4x100m relay.
The Sharks await their fate to see which athletes get selected and have qualified for the 2026 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. The heat list comes out on May 12.
The Nationals meet runs from May 21 to 23 at Welch Stadium in Emporia, Kansas.
To stay up to date on the Sharks track program, follow on Instagram and X, @NSU_XCTF.
FULL RESULTS
