Hutchinson CC Sports Information
WICHITA/PITTSBURG – Kemisha Dominique earned her first career event victory while the Hutchinson Community College women's track and field team collected two NJCAA Indoor national qualifiers on Saturday at both the Wichita State/Herm Wilson Classic and the Wendy's/Pittsburg State Invitational.
Dominque won the 400 meters while Brooke Hawkins earned her second national qualification in the high jump at the Herm Wilson Classic at Wichita State's Heskett Center. Taylor Hoskinson led the middle distance and distance runners at the Plaster Center in Pittsburg with a qualification in the 800 meters.
Through two weekends and three this season, the Blue Dragons now have four qualifiers for the 2024 NJCAA Indoor Championships on March 1-2 in Gainesville, Florida.
Dominque won the 38-athlete event at Wichita State with a time of 1 minute, 1.53 seconds. She won the event by 0.63 seconds over Southeastern Oklahoma's Makensi Greenwood.
Hawkins tied for third in the high jump in Wichita with a clearance of 5 feet, 4 1/2 inches (1.64), which is a national qualifying mark and a personal best. Hawkins also finished sixth in the long jump on Saturday at 16-8 3/4.
Hawkins has now qualified for the NJCAA Nationals in both the triple jump and high jump.
At Pittsburg, Hoskinson moved into No. 2 on the Blue Dragon indoor 800-meter charts with a national qualifying mark of 2:22.21. She finished 22nd in the event at Pittsburg State.
The other Blue Dragon qualifier is pole vaulter Nakaela O'Hair, who qualified on Friday in Wichita.
Other Saturday highlights at Wichita State:
+ Sophomore Kaylee James knocked on the door of a national qualification in the 60-meter hurdles on Saturday. James qualified for the finals with the fourth-best preliminary time of 9.18 seconds, just 0.18 seconds off the qualifying standard. She then finished third in the finals, improving her season-best tome of 0.05 seconds, which is just .05 seconds off the qualifying standard. James also finished seventh in the 400 meters with a PR time of 1:02.13.
+ Liberty Limon placed seventh in the high jump at 4-11 (1.50m).
Other Saturday highlights in Pittsburg:
+ Ellie Van Zelfden posted the 11th-best Blue Dragon indoor 3,000-meter time of 11:31.77. She finished 22nd in the event. Van Zelfden also posted a PR in the Mile run at 5:26.89.
The Blue Dragons are at the Washburn Open next Friday and Saturday in Topeka.