Alabama Track and Field Signs 20 to 2017-18 Recruiting Class
11/17/2016 12:23:00 PM | Track & Field, Cross Country
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama track and field head coach Dan Waters announced the signing of 20 athletes – 13 women and seven men – during the early signing period for the 2017-18 academic year.
Women's signees in this year's class are Ameena Benselloum (Distance/Herndon, Va.), Isabel Caddo (Distance/Hoover, Ala.), Colleen Clancy (Pole Vault/Bulverde, Texas), Tamara Clark (Sprints/High Point, N.C.), Ashley Eavenson (Distance/Northport, Ala.), Daija Lampkin (Sprints/Middletown, Del.), Tamara Moncrieffe (Jumps/Ocho Rios, Jamaica), Mauricia Prieto (Sprints/Cochrane Village, Trinidad & Tobago), Kaylee Riley (Pole Vault/Bremen, Ga.), Jaimie Robinson (Jumps/Flossmoor, Ill.), Kathleen Snodgrass (Distance/Huntsville, Ala.), Portious Warren (Throws/Matura, Trinidad & Tobago) and Demi Washington (Sprints/Clinton, Miss.). The class includes four sprinters, four distance runners, two pole vaulters, two jumpers and one thrower.
Men's signees include Champion Allison (Sprints/Richmond, Texas), Santiago Basso (Throws/Roselle, Ill.), Christian Edwards (Jumps/Lake Charles, La.), George Evans (Throws/Iverness, Scotland), Ryan Lipe (Pole Valut/Carmel, Ind.), Ruebin Walters (Hurdles/Diego Martin, Trinidad & Tobago) and Okeen Williams (Hurdles/St. Elizabeth, Jamaica). The class includes one sprinter, two hurdlers, two throwers, one pole vaulter and one jumper.
Below is a look at each signee:
Women
Ameena Benselloum, Herdon, Va. (Westfield)
District champion in the 800 meters and member of all-state 4x800 relay quartet at Westfield High School … personal bests of 2:14.22 in the 800 meters, 5:11.01 in the 1,600 meters and 18:55 in the 5,000 meters.
Isabell Caddo, Hoover, Ala. (Spain Park)
State qualifier in the 800 meters and 1,600 meters as a junior at Spain Park … state qualifier in cross country as a junior and senior in 2015 and 2016 … ran a personal-best 2:25.39 in the 800 meters at the 2016 state sectional meet … ran a personal best of 5:26.57 in the 1,600 meters at the 2016 state championships.
Colleen Clancy, Bulverde, Texas (Smithson Valley)
Two-time district, area and regional champion and two-time state runner-up in the pole vault at Smithson Valley High School … fifth in the high school pole vault at the Texas Relays in 2016 … second in the pole vault at the 2016 New Balance Indoor Nationals.
Tamara Clark, High Point, N.C. (High Point Central)
AAU national champion in the 100 meters and 200 meters in 2016 … state champion in the 100 meters and 200 meters outdoors and the 55 meters and 300 meters indoors in 2016 … school record-holder in the 100 and 200.
Ashley Eavenson, Northport, Ala. (Tuscaloosa County)
State qualifier in the 800 meters and 3,200 meters outdoors and the 800 meters, 1,600 meters and 3,200 meters indoors as a junior in 2016 … holds school records at 800 meters, 1,600 meters, mile, 3,200 meters, 2-mile and 5,000 meters.
Daija Lampkin, Middletown, Del. (Middletown)
State champion in the indoor and outdoor 200 meters and 400 meters, outdoor 100 meters and indoor 55 meters as a junior in 2016 … state record-holder in the 200 meters (23.68) … school record-holder in the 100 meters, 200 meters, 400 meters, 55 meters and 60 meters.
Tamara Moncrieffe, Ocho Rios, Jamaica (New Mexico Junior College)
Won the triple jump at the 2016 NJCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships … third in the NJCAA outdoor triple jump and fourth in the long jump in 2016 … competed for Jamaica at the 2014 IAAF Junior World Championships and 2013 IAAF Youth World Championships … personal bests of 44-9 in the triple jump and 20-6 1/4 in the long jump.
Mauricia Prieto, Cochrane Village, Trinidad & Tobago (South Plains College)
Finished sixth in the 100 meters and third in the 200 meters at the 2016 NJCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships … also ran on South Plains'4x100 and 4x400-meter relay teams that finished first and second respectively … member of Trinidad & Tobago's 4x100-meter relay team that set the meet record at the Central America & Caribbean Junior Championships and finished fourth at the 2014 IAAF Junior World Championships.
Kaylee Riley, Bremen, Ga. (Bremen)
Won the pole vault in the Emerging Elite division at the 2016 New Balance Outdoor Championships with a meet record of 12-4 3/4 … finished third at the USA Track & Field Junior Championships … two-time state pole vault champion … personal best of 12-9.
Jaimie Robinson, Flossmoor, Ill. (Homewood-Flossmoor)
Third in the triple jump at the 2016 New Balance Outdoor Nationals with a jump of 41-10 1/2 … also finished third in the triple jump and fifth in the long jump at the 2016 Illinois Class 3A Championships … finished fourth in the triple jump at the 2016 New Balance Indoor Nationals.
Kathleen Snodgrass, Huntsville, Ala. (Grissom)
Qualified for the Alabama outdoor state championships in the two-mile as a junior in 2016 … cross country school record-holder at 5,000 meters (18:51.11) … personal best of 40:41.23 in the 10,000 meters for cross country … captain of the cross country team as a senior.
Portious Warren, Matura, Trinidad & Tobago (Central Arizona)
Won the national champion in the shot put and finished fourth in the weight throw at the 2016 NJCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships … fourth in the shot put and ninth in the javelin at the 2016 NJCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships … also competed in the discus and hammer throw at the outdoor championships … competed for Trinidad & Tobago in the shot put at the 2014 IAAF Junior World Championships in Eugene, Oregon and the 2013 IAAF Youth World Championships in Ukraine.
Demi Washington, Clinton, Miss. (Clinton)
Second in the 200 meters (24.50) and seventh in the 100 meters (12.23) at the USA Track and Field Junior National Championships … state champion in the 100 meters (11.81) and 200 meters (24:06) at the 2016 Mississippi 6A State Championships as a freshman in 2014 … state runner-up in the 100 meters (11.88) and 200 meters (24.67) as a junior in 2016.
Men
Champion Allison, Richmond, Texas (George Ranch)
Won the 100 meters and 200 meters at the 2016 New Balance Outdoor Championships and was voted Athlete of the Meet for his performance … ran the opening leg on the United States' gold medal-winning 4x400-meter relay at the IAAF Junior World Championships … UIL 5A state champion in the 400 meters as a junior at George Ranch.
Santiago Basso, Roselle, Ill. (Lake Park)
Finished fourth in the discus and fifth in the shot put at the 2016 USA Track & Field Junior Championships competing for DuPage Track Club … also qualified for junior nationals in the hammer throw … finished third in the javelin at the Illinois Junior Championships … finished first in the discus, second in the shot put, third in the javelin and third in the hammer throw at the USATF Region 7 Championships.
Christian Edwards, Lake Charles, La. (Washington-Marion)
Two-time state champion in the high jump in 2015 and 2016 … state champion in the triple jump as a sophomore in 2015 and runner-up as a junior in 2016 … finished third in the state in the long jump in 2016 … also a member of the Washington-Marion basketball team that reached the state finals in 2016.
George Evans, Inverness, Scotland (Strathallan School)
Scottish Schools record holder in the discus (181-8) and the indoor (60-0 1/2) and outdoor shot put (56-3 1/4) … finalist in the discus at the 2016 IAAF Junior World Championships in Poland … finished third in the discus at the 2015 IAAF World Youth Championships in Colombia … finished second in the discus at the 2015 Commonwealth Youth Games in Western Samoa.
Ryan Lipe, Carmel, Ind. (Carmel)
State champion in the pole vault as a junior in 2016 … finished third in the state in the pole vault as a sophomore in 2015 … also a member of Carmel's sectional champion 4x100-meter relay team … helped lead Carmel to the Indiana state outdoor championship in 2015 … three-time state qualifier in the pole vault.
Ruebin Walters, Diego Martin, Trinidad & Tobago (Central Arizona)
Will begin competing for the Tide during the 2017 indoor season … won the 110-meter hurdles and 400-meter hurdles at the 2016 NJCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships … won the 60-meter hurdles at the 2016 NJCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships … Trinidad & Tobago national youth record holder in the 110-meter hurdles (12.49) … finished sixth in the 110-meter hurdles at the 2015 IAAF Junior World Championships in Eugene, Ore. … Also competed for Trinidad & Tobago at the 2014 junior worlds in Spain at the 2011 IAAF World Youth Championships in France.
Okeen Williams, St. Elizabeth, Jamaica (South Plains College)
Won the 400-meter hurdles at the 2016 NJCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships … was a member of South Plains' NJCAA-winning 4x400-meter relay team at the 2016 championships … also earned All-America honors in the 100 meters … competed in the 400-meter hurdles for Jamaica at the 2013 IAAF Youth World Championships in Ukraine and the 2014 IAAF Junior World Championships in Eugene, Ore.
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