AUSTIN, Texas – It was a long wait for Illinois State field standouts Kameesha Smith and Sydney Laufenberg, who had to wait until the final day of completion at the 2019 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships Saturday to finally perform in Austin, Texas.
The wait was well worth it, as both took home second-team All-America honors with top 16 finishes in their respective events at Mike A. Myers Stadium.
Smith started the high jump competition strong clearing the first two bars (1.70m and 1.75m) in just three attempts. As she headed to the third bar at 1.78m (5-10), she missed on her first two attempts but cleared the bar on her third and final attempt to tie a personal best. However, her competition came to an end on the next bar at 1.81m (5-11.25) as she finished in a tied for 12th to earn second-team All-America honors.
"Kameesha competed very well, making several good attempts at 1.81m which would have placed her in the top 8," ISU Director of Track & Field and Cross Country Jeff Bovee said. "She is a competitor and thrived on the national stage."
Laufenberg launched her best effort of the discus competition on her first attempt, recording a mark of 54.21m (177-11). However, she could not improve on that mark and did not advance out of the prelims to finish 14th overall and also take home second-team All-America honors as well.
"Sydney started with a big first throw, which allowed her to be aggressive on her subsequent throws," Bovee stated. "Although she came up just shy of making the finals, she finished much higher than her pre-championship ranking. The staff and student-athletes leave Austin hungry to return next year with many more qualifiers and to put many more points on the board. We have two strong teams returning, so the next challenge for our program is to convert our conference and regional success onto the national stage. Jack, Kameesha and Sydney did that this weekend and we return home proud of their efforts."
For all the latest on Redbird track & field and cross country, visit GoRedbirds.com and follow the 'Birds on Twitter (@Redbird_TrackXC), Instagram (@redbird_trackxc), and Facebook (@redbirdsTF).
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Â Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
Â
