NEW YORK, N.Y. – The Tuskegee track and field program began their 2023 season competing in the HBCU Showcase, held at the Armory Track & Field Center over the weekend.

The meet also served as a college fair, allowing high school track teams to not only attended and compete, but also had a chance to talk to representatives from the different universities in attendance. 

"The HBCU showcase was an outstanding experience for not only Tuskegee, but other HBCUs as well as high school student-athletes on a national stage," coach LaShaunda Jones said. "The showcase allowed us to introduce this year's version of Tuskegee University track and field, and hopefully we can carry this momentum into the remainder of the year."  

Dennis Bailey (Savannah, Ga.), Diandre White (Baltimore, Md.), and Kimani Hare (Kennesaw, Ga.) all had standout individual efforts, while multiple other Golden Tigers performed well to start of the 2023 schedule.

"It felt good to be able to compete against variety of other HBCU track and field athletes and programs," Bailey stated. "The environment was competitive throughout the day, and I look forward to seeing improvements as a team as well as individually."

The senior earned a top-15 and a top-25 finish in his two solo events, running a 7.13s (23rd) in the 60-meter dash, while finishing at 22.73s (13th) in the 200-meter event. Meanwhile, Jude Servius (Miami, Fla.) finished at 7.29s and 23.37s in the same two events respectively in his collegiate debut.

Jordan Winder (New Orleans, La.) also made his debut for Tuskegee over the weekend, earning a top-20 finish in the 400-meter at 53.79s (19th), while finishing the 60-meter with a time of 7.49s.
White made his appearances during the 500-meter and 800-meter events, finishing tenth at 1:11.07 and 22nd at 2:07.50 respectively. Furthermore, in the 4x400 relay, a grouping of Bailey, Jireh Jones (Perryville, Md.), Servius, and Winder ended with a time of 3:40.71, earned a 15th place finish in the relay.
In the field events, Jones measured at 6.08 meters (19'11.5") in the long jump, followed by Hare who finished in the top-ten in the weight throw at 10.07m, along with a finish at 18 in the shot-put event with a distance of 10.54m in the weight throw. Meanwhile on the women's side, freshman Akierah Walker (Clinton, Miss.) finished 31st in the 200 with a time of 27.57s, followed by a 1:03.95 mark, good for 24th in the 400-meter event.
When asked about the overall outlook of the meet, Jones sounded motivated for the future.

"On the track side, I had a chance to witness our young men and women be competitive with student athletes within the SIAC conference as well as additional conferences and divisions," she explained. "We have plenty positive things to look back along as well as things we need to improve from this first indoor meet, and we will continue to train and get better for the outdoor season."

Follow The Golden Tigers on Socials
For complete coverage of Tuskegee University athletics, follow on social media at @MyTUAthletics (Twitter/Instagram), @GoldenTigerSports on Facebook, and visit the official home of Tuskegee University athletics at www.goldentigersports.com.