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Bethune-Cookman Track & Field Has First Competition under New Coach (GAINESVILLE, Fla. – ) Bethune-Cookman College women’s and men’s track & field got to business over the weekend cracking open the new era of head coach Garfield Ellenwood at the helm of the Wildcats program. B-CC took part in the annual Florida Intercollegiate as the start to their 2007 indoor season in Gainesville, Florida. On the men’s side of things, Harold Rose, Jr. (Jacksonville, Fla.) earned a sixth place showing in the long jump, the highest finish for any man or woman sporting the Wildcat maroon and gold on the day. Rose registered a leap of 21 feet and 11 inches (7.01m). Craig Johnson (Miami, Fla.) followed up Rose in the shot put event with a seventh place showing on a throw of 46 feet and nine inches (46.01m). On the track for the guys, it was Damarius Carroll (Tallahassee, Fla.) scoring a 15th place appearance in the 200 meter dash with a time of 24.49 seconds. Franklin Harris (Port St. Lucie, Fla.) aided the ‘Cats with a time of 52.91 seconds in the 400 meter dash … good enough for a 16th place showing. The 4x400 meter relay squad, consisting of Carroll, Rose, Harris and Cecil Robertson (Orlando, Fla.), finished ninth overall with a time of 3:29.43 for the event. “Things could have been better, but I think we are certainly showing signs of improvement from where we were when I first got here back in September,” admits Ellenwood. “This was a tough event, but a good one to measure ourselves against because the MEAC [Mid-Eastern Athletic Association] and several other meets are going to be just as hard, if not tougher.” As for the women’s events, it was clearly all about Teanne Sergeant (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) as she posted the highest mark of any female competitor for the ‘Cats with her 11th place finish in the 400 meter dash. Sergeant collected a 1:00.29 in the event. She also competed as a part of one of B-CC’s two (2) 4x400 meter relay squads. The “A” squad, consisting of Sergeant, freshman Britney Gibson (Deltona, Fla.), Monique Scott (New Orleans, La.) and Tiffany Gordon (Orlando, Fla.), finished 13th for the event with a time of 4:13.08 overall. Gordon ran the anchor for the team, finishing with an individual split time of 57.8 seconds (unofficially). In the field events for the women’s team, freshman Samantha Shade (Kissimmee, Fla.) posted a 12th place finish in the triple jump event with a distance of 11.58m (34 feet and 11 inches). Shade also saw action in the long jump for the ‘Cats, finishing up with a distance of 5.53m (15 feet and 10 inches). “The women are still not where we want them to be, but improvement is undeniable,” admits Ellenwood. “They are working hard, and they are showing us that they want to get better. I like the fact that Teanne and some of the others are showing heart and the desire to get better. That’s the first step in building a great program … having kids that want to win.” The Wildcats, both men and women, will be back in action again next weekend when they travel north to Landover, Maryland for the Terrapin Invitational hosted by the University of Maryland. The one day event will be held at the Princess George Sport and Learning Complex on January 20 beginning at 9 a.m. --BCC--
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