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A&T Track Performs Masterfully in the Pacific Northwest

Jamie Walker • June 13, 2021

North Carolina A&T Impresses in Track Championships

June 13, 2021 - By Jamie Walker. Historical background provided by Dr. Kenyatta J. Cavil

EUGENE, ORE --  In its last performance for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) before the move to the Big South, North Carolina A&T Track and Field finishes the weekend at the NCAA Track and Field Division I Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Oregon in impressive fashion with both men and women's teams placing in the top-4 in the nation, which they were the only school to accomplish, along with walking away with four National Championships. 

The party got started on Friday as the men were competitive in the finals of the 4x100m Relay and ended the night winning the 400m Dash and 4x400m Relay. The 4x100m relay team finished in 4th place with a time of 38.60, nearly beating Florida State, who finished third by five thousandth (0.005) of a second, but setting the tone for what was yet to come for the evening. 


Freshman Randolph Ross, son of Aggies’ Head Track Coach Duane Ross would be the star of the show for the Aggies in the 400m Final as he would run a 43.85, winning the National Championship with the fastest time in the world this year and third fastest time in collegiate history.  Teammate Trevor Stewart would come in 4th, almost getting to the podium.  


Ross would say after the race, “We’ve been training for this all year, we knew if we got to 350 first the rest would be easy.”  



(Photo Credit: Erin Mizelle)

The winning was not done for North Carolina A&T as the 4x400m Relay was left.  Ross along with Stewart, Akeem Sirleaf, and Daniel Stokes would bring home another 'ship to East Greensboro by winning in exciting fashion, running a time of 3:00.92. With the win, the "fastest four of the year" would claim the indoor and outdoor championships. 


Overall, the men's program ended the evening finishing in 3rd place in the nation with 35 points, and had the best finish for a HBCU men’s program at the NCAA DI level and tied the HBCU women’s previous best. Texas Southern women finished 3rd in 1986 and the men finished 6th in 1987 and 4th in 1989. A&T's previous best finished was 14th.

On Saturday evening, it was time for the ladies, and they too would not disappoint.  Led by Sophomore Cambrea Sturgis, the Lady Aggies showed out, setting the tone in the 4x100m Relay.  Sturgis along with Jonah Ross, Kemaya Debose-Epps, and Symone Darius, finished 3rd with a time of 43.03.


Sturgis would then compete in the 100m Dash and let us just say the commentating was not in her favor at the introduction.  However, by the end of the race they would call her National Champion as she ran a meet and collegiate record time of 10.74.

Sturgis would have one more crack at another championship in the 200m Dash and once again she took advantage.  Sturgis would nearly set another meet record, finishing in 1st with a time of 22.12, adding another National Championship to her name and the North Carolina A&T shelf.

The Aggie Women would finish in 4th Place overall, with 31 points, rounding off an impressive showing in Oregon.  HBCU Social Media was phenomenal as the usual teasing that rival school fanbases have for one another were unified in their support for one cause, cheering on the North Carolina A&T Aggies in these championships, and making sure the nation and television commentators put respect on their name.

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