Valete Graham Places 13th in Men's Long Jump at NCAA East Regional Track and Field Meet

Courtesy: UAlbany Sports Information

Tallahassee, Fla. – University at Albany’s Valete Graham finished 13th in the men’s long jump at the NCAA East Regional Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Friday, May 30 at Florida State University’s Mike Long Track. Graham, a sophomore, is one of 12 UAlbany athletes competing in the two-day regional competition.

Graham went 23-feet, 8.75-inches on his first attempt. The reigning America East Conference champion qualified for the regional by topping the 24-foot mark at last month’s Penn Relays. Florida State’s Ngonidzashe Makusha went 26-0.25 to capture the NCAA East Regional crown. The top-five finishers in each event automatically advance to the NCAA Championships on June 11-14 in Des Moines, Iowa. UAlbany’s Kyle Nadler was 24th in the long jump with a leap of 22-7.

Daniel Avery and Jean Juste did not reach the men’s 110-meter hurdles final after placing third and fourth, respectively in their heat. Avery, a freshman who already holds the program’s top Division I time, was clocked in 14.04 seconds. Juste, who won the America East title in a conference-record performance, sprinted 14.26, just one-hundredth of a second off his personal best. Kamilah McShine, the America East champion in the women’s 100-meter hurdles, was sixth in her heat with a time of 14.21 seconds and failed to advance. Jeffery Barnes, the America East 200-meter winner, took sixth in his preliminary heat in 21.76.

Pole vaulter Luke Schoen, the school record holder, leads a group of six athletes who will compete during Saturday’s schedule. Schoen vaulted 17-feet, 5-inches earlier this month. Michael McCadney, who is coming off victories at the America East and IC4A championships, posted a school-record effort in the triple jump two weeks ago. Laura Cummings established the program’s standard in the 3,000-meter steeplechase when she won the conference crown.