Desmond, Griffith, Mell Head to NCAA Division III Track and Field Championships

NCAA Division III Track & Field Championships Home Page

CLAREMONT, Calif. - Senior Jacque Desmond (pole vault), junior Sabrine Griffith (long jump) and junior Amanda Mell (triple jump) will head to the NCAA Division III Track and Field Championships for the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women's track and field team after official invitations were extended by the NCAA this weekend.

Desmond, Griffith and Mell earned their way to the NCAA Championships in Geneva, Ohio by earning marks in the top 22 nationally in their respective events. They will be joining eight members of the men's track and field team at the NCAA Championships as well, giving the program 11 representatives in Ohio. 

Desmond has the best seed of anyone representing CMS at nationals, placing third in the pole vault with a top clearance of 3.97 meters (13 feet, one-quarter inch). She became the first women's pole vaulter in SCIAC history to clear 13 feet, when she took first place at the league championships on April 27 with her new personal-best. 

Mell comes into the NCAA Championships with the sixth-best triple jump in the nation, which she accomplished last week at the Redlands Final Qualifier with an even 12 meters. Her previous personal best had been 11.57 meters, which she accomplished at the SCIAC Championships to come in third place, but she was able to go way past that mark and earn her way into nationals with her 12.0 jump at Redlands. 

Griffith also earned her qualifying mark in the long jump at the SCIAC with a 5.75 meters, which was good for second place, passing her previous PR of 5.73 earlier this season at the San Diego State Aztec Invitational. Griffith also attended the Redlands Final Qualifier last week and hit the same 5.75-meter mark again, which kept her safely above the cutline in 12th place when all the final results were tabulated.  

Desmond will compete in the pole vault finals on Thursday at 12 p.m. local time (9 a.m. Pacific), while Griffith will be in the long jump finals at 5 p.m. Mell will take part in the triple jump finals on Saturday at 1:45 p.m. 

For a complete list of NCAA events, times, and qualifiers, head to the NCAA Track and Field Championships timing page.