FORMER Jamaica national junior high jumper Lamara Distin of Texas A&M University (TAMU) won her first Southeastern Conference women’s field event a thlete of the w eek honours this week, while Gabriel Bailey of Kent State University was named the Mid-American Conference (MAC) female s cholar- a thlete of the w eek.

Distin got the award after tying for first place in the NCAA Division 1 women’s high jump following her victory in the event at the Willie Williams Classic at the University of Arizona with a college outdoor best 1.83m, the joint seventh-best mark in Texas A&M history.

The former Rusea’s, Vere Technical and Hydel High representative sat out all of last year but got off to a fast start in the indoor season, clearing a best of 1.82m and qualifying for the national championships.

Bailey, the former St Jago thrower who was sixth in the indoor national shot put, was named the Mid-American Conference female scholar-athlete of the week for competition from March 8-14.

The honour is announced weekly by the Mid-Atlantic Conference to an athlete, male or female, who has a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or better and performs well during the week’s competition.

She threw her personal best 17.11m at the NCAA indoor nationals – the second-highest finish ever in the event by a MAC student-athlete – and earned First Team All-America honours for the first time.

— Paul Reid