Two-time World Championships representative Ackelia Smith of the University of Texas and Luke Brown of the University of Kentucky set NCAA leading marks in the women’s long jump and men’s triple jump events, respectively, on Saturday, while opening their NCAA Indoor competitions.

Smith won the women’s long jump at the Dr Martin Luther King Collegiate Invitational at the Albuquerque Convention Center, New Mexico, with 6.73m, while Brown set a Kentucky programme record 16.80m to win the men’s triple jump at the Corky Classic held at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas.

There were also wins for World Championships high jump finalists Lamara Distin, Shaquena Foote, who broke the San Diego State women’s 400m record and former St Elizabeth Technical jumper Aaliyah McNeil of the University of Minnesota, who was a double winner at the Simmons-Harvey Invitational indoor track meet held at the University of Michigan in Ann Harbour.

Smith had just three jumps on Saturday, starting with 6.72m, improving to 6.73m in the second round before ending her night with a 6.66m jump, all three better than second-placed Tyra Gittens’ 6.28m.

Her teammate, Aaliyah Foster, last year’s girls’ Class One champion at the ISSA Champs, was fourth with an indoors best 6.17m.

Brown, the former Calabar High standout whose 2023 season was affected by injuries, broke his own school triple jump record when he won with 16.80m, beating his previous best of 16.69m set last February, and also had a 16.70m measurement as well.

World Championships fifth-placed finisher Distin broke her own meet record at the Ted Nelson Invitational after clearing 1.94m to open her season in the high jump.

She broke the record 1.88m that she had set in 2022, needing all three jumps to clear 1.94m before failing at the Olympic Games qualifying height of 1.97m.

Foote of San Diego State University set two personal bests, while breaking the San Diego Sate programme record in the women’s 400m when she finished second overall in 53.30 seconds, behind Lanae Tava Thoms’ 51.97 seconds, while beating World Championships finalist Candice McLeod, 53.31 seconds.

She also won the women’s ‘unseeded’ 200m with an indoor personal best 23.47 seconds.

McNeil, who also attended Iowa Western, won the women’s long jump with a mark of 5.73m and cleared 1.75m to win the high jump.

Meanwhile there were meet records for the Clemson University pair of Daniel Cope and Marie Forbes in the weight throw event at the Ted Nelson Invitational at Texas A&M, College Station, Texas.

Cope threw a meet record 20.85m in the men’s weight throw breaking 20.28m set by Austin Cooke of Texas A&M in 2018, while Forbes threw 20.84m, just shy of a metre longer than the 19.85m set by Erin Atkinson of Baylor in 2014.

Courtney Lawrence also of Clemson threw a personal best 18.32m to win the men’s shot put, beating Brandon Lloyd of Arizona State, who also had a lifetime best 18.01m.

Kevona Davis of the University of Texas won the women’s 300m at the Albuquerque meet, running 37.28 seconds for second behind Dina Asher Smith’s 36.77 seconds while her teammate Dejanae Oakley was third in 37.43 seconds and jumper Smith was seventh in 37.93 seconds.

Oakley Texas was also fifth in the women’s 60m in 7.53 seconds.

Daniel Sloley, who transferred to Arizona State threw 15.42m in the women’s shot put.

Kelly-Ann Beckford of the University of Houston ran 2:07.09 seconds to win the women’s 800m, the tenth best time in the NCAA so far this year, while Brandon Pottinger was joint third in the men’s high jump with a season’s best 2.06m.

Rhianna Phipps of Nebraska won the women’s triple jump at the Mark Colligan Memorial in Nebraska with 12.51m, while her teammate Lotavia Brown was third with 11.97m.

Daniella Anglin of the University of South Dakota was third in the high jump with 1.73m, while Kavian Kerr of Nebraska ran 21.64 seconds in the men’s 200m.

Warren Barrett of Liberty University won his second-straight men’s shot put even after throwing 18.51m at the Brad Tolsman Invitational held at Liberty.

Barrett returned a week earlier from a 10-month layoff to win an event also held at Liberty.

Former Hydel High multi-eventers Shericka Christie and Zion Bennett both of Wofford College in South Carolina were also in good forms at the meet.

Christie, who was second in the Heptathlon at Champs last year, won the women’s long jump with 5.93m and was second in the triple jump with 12.18m, both college bests.

The triple jump mark was under the previous meet record 12.15m set in 2023 by Micah Fulton of North Carolina Central as Ashlee Osaji of Appalachian State won with 12.19m.

Bennett also had two college bests, running 22.07 seconds for the men’s 200m and 49.51 seconds for the 400m.

J’Voughnn Blake of Dartmouth ran a personal best 2:23.47 seconds to win the men’s 1,000m at an Ivy League triangular meet held at Yale University.

Gabrielle Bailey and Aliesha Shaw of Kent State University were first and second respectively in the women’s shot put at the Akron/Kent Sates Dual meet.

Bailey threw 15.24m for the win while Shaw threw 15.01m.