HBCU women advance at NCAA Track and Field

Several HBCU women’s track and field athletes punched their tickets to the NCAA East First Round quarterfinals on Thursday, delivering strong performances across sprint, hurdle and middle-distance events.

Athletes from Alabama State, Florida A&M, Howard, Southern and Delaware State all secured advancement spots as they continue their pursuit of a berth at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Oregon.

The NCAA East First Round advances the top 24 athletes in each event to the quarterfinal round, with the top performers there earning a trip to Eugene.

Southern’s Tashina Alase advances in 100-meter hurdles

Southern standout Tashina Alase posted one of the best performances among HBCU competitors in the women’s 100-meter hurdles.

Alase finished second in her heat with a time of 13.00 seconds to earn an automatic qualifying spot for the quarterfinals.

Alabama State’s Rasunek Tyler-Thompson also advanced after clocking a season-best 13.02 seconds. Florida A&M’s Ty’yanah Adams missed qualifying by one hundredth of a second after finishing with a time of 13.27.

Women’s 100-meter hurdles qualifiers

Florida A&M and Howard advance in the 100 meters

Florida A&M senior Diandrenique Gaines and Howard sophomore Yahnari Lyons both moved on in the women’s 100-meter dash.

Gaines finished third in her heat with a time of 11.31 seconds to earn an automatic qualifying spot. Lyons advanced on time after running 11.34.

Women’s 100-meter qualifiers

Alabama State’s Aliyah Williams moves on in the 800 meters

Alabama State junior Aliyah Williams secured a spot in the quarterfinals of the women’s 800 meters.

Williams finished fourth in her heat and advanced with a season-best time of 2:04.19.

Women’s 800-meter qualifiers

Howard leads HBCU contingent in 400-meter hurdles

Howard University produced the strongest HBCU showing of the day in the women’s 400-meter hurdles.

Aniya Woodruff advanced automatically after running 55.75 to finish second in her heat. Teammate Cenaiya Billups won her heat in 56.13 to secure another automatic berth.

Florida A&M’s Katelynn Smith and Delaware State’s Chidubem (Miriam) Okwudibonye also advanced on time, giving HBCUs four quarterfinalists in the event.

Women’s 400-meter hurdles qualifiers

Howard and Florida A&M advance in 200 meters

Howard’s Yahnari Lyons continued her impressive day by winning her heat in the women’s 200-meter dash.

Lyons clocked 22.64 seconds to earn an automatic qualifying spot. Florida A&M’s Diandrenique Gaines also advanced after finishing second in her heat with a time of 23.04.

Women’s 200-meter qualifiers

HBCU women advancing to NCAA East First Round quarterfinals

A total of 11 HBCU advancement spots were earned on Thursday, led by multiple qualifiers from Howard, Florida A&M and Alabama State.

Athletes advancing to the quarterfinal round include:

• Tashina Alase (Southern)
• Rasunek Tyler-Thompson (Alabama State)
• Diandrenique Gaines (Florida A&M) – 100m and 200m
• Yahnari Lyons (Howard) – 100m and 200m
• Aliyah Williams (Alabama State)
• Aniya Woodruff (Howard)
• Cenaiya Billups (Howard)
• Katelynn Smith (Florida A&M)
• Chidubem (Miriam) Okwudibonye (Delaware State)

The quarterfinal round will determine which athletes advance to the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon.

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This story was originally published May 29, 2026 at 7:50 AM.