BOSTON, United States — Fresh from her statement run in Saturday’s 60m final at the NCAA Division 1 Indoor Track and Field Championships at the TRACK at New Balance in Boston, Louisiana State University’s (LSU) precocious Brianna Lyston says she is ready to join the conversation about the fastest women in Jamaica.

The sophomore completed the indoor season in fine form, racing to an LSU programme-record 7.03 seconds. She became the second fastest in the 60m dash in NCAA history, and broke into the all-time Jamaican top five list.

“I think it’s all about pride, to be honest. I think pride pushes you to just carry the legacy of [your] country’s name, or your school’s name, or everything,” the 19-year-old Lyston, who won the South-Eastern Conference (SEC) title last month, said.

“Jamaica has some great sprinters, some great sprinters; I just want to be… in the conversation, I want to be one of them.”

The smooth-running former St Jago High and Hydel High athlete had equalled her previous personal best 7.07 seconds in the first round on Friday. A day later she timed her start almost to perfection and streaked away to the finish line, beating a strong field, with University of Georgia’s Kaila Jackson placing second for the second-straight year and repeating the 7.08 she ran in 2023. University of Oregon’s Jadyn Mays, who was competing in her third-straight 60m final, was third in 7.12.

The pint-sized Lyston, who was part of the LSU women’s 4x400m relay team alongside another former Hydel High runner Garriel White, said she was “amazed” to have run so fast.

“I didn’t know what I was hoping for. I was hoping to come here today, get the start and from the start, push the last 30 to 60 metres,” she said when asked about her fast time.

Her new personal best saw her move past four Jamaicans to trail only legends Merlene Ottey (6.96), Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce (6.98) and Veronica Campbell-Brown (7.00) over the indoor 60m distance.

Lyston broke the LSU record she had previously shared with 2018 winner Aleia Hobbs, and is second all time only to Julien Alfred of Texas who won last year.

“I’m happy. My heart feels so full! I feel like I have nerves all over; I’m shaking. I don’t know how to… embrace it or show it but just know [that] I’m happy. If I don’t look happy I promise [that I am],” Lyston told reporters on Saturday.

“I am happy that the pieces came together, you know, and that my hard work and practice is paying off. It’s just for me now to transition from indoor to outdoor and to see if I could better my 100m times and my 200m times and help my team score some points.”

She said despite the confidence she exudes, she takes nothing for granted.

“I’m gonna be honest with y’all: Regardless of me coming out here and running fast times, sometimes I still get nervous for the next race. [I ask myself] ‘…What am I going to do? Is everything going to be like, push forward? I am not going backwards.’…You know, sometimes there are some questions there but…it’s just like, ‘Trust yourself, and your programme, and your coach, and just have the talk with your coach.’ It’s important to prepare you for championships like these,” she explained.

Lyston joined three other Jamaicans who won at the three-day championships. The others were men’s long jump champion Wayne Pinnock and high jump winner Romaine Beckford, both of University of Arkansas, and Rivaldo Marshall of University of Iowa who won the men’s 800m.

Meanwhile on Saturday, Nickisha Pryce of University of Arkansas was second in the women’s 400m final in 51.00 seconds, helping to complete a sweep of the top three places for the “Razorbacks”. She was also seventh in the 200m in 23.18.

Shenese Walker of Florida State University was fifth in the women’s 60m in a personal best 7.19; Rhianna Phipps of University of Nebraska jumped a personal best 13.59m for fifth in the women’s triple jump; and fifth-ranked Shantae Foreman of Clemson University was 12th with 13.16m.

Rosealee Cooper of Mississippi State University was eighth in the women’s 60m hurdles in 8.27.