Former Edwin Allen High and Jamaica junior representative Christopher Young was a double winner during the National Junior College Athletics Association’s (NJCAA) Region VI Championships at Pratt Community College in Kansas last weekend.

The Barton County sophomore, who has signed to attend the University of Alabama, starting in August, retained his men’s javelin throw title and also won the men’s hammer throw. He was second in both the discus throw and shot put, beaten by fellow Jamaicans.

He was one of eight Jamaican winners at the Region VI Championships, while four others won at the Region XI Championships held at Iowa Central Community College in Fort Dodge, Iowa.

Young won the javelin with a throw of 58.59m and had a season’s best 55.32m to win the hammer throw title.

Jamaicans occupied the first four places in the men’s discus throw, which was won by Young’s Barton teammate Ricardo Hayles with a personal best and NJCAA leading 60.83m. Young was next with a personal best 59.93m, Trevor Gunzell of Coffeyville Community College was third with 59.91m, and Christopher Brown fourth with 51.37m

Gunzell retained his men’s shot put title with 17.76m, Young was second with 17.68m in a repeat of last year’s results, Hayles was third with 16.49m, and Brown sixth with 14.96m.

Tamara Thompson of Cloud County won the women’s hammer throw with 49.44m, her teammate Shackala Henry won the high jump with 1.73m, while Kay-Lagay Clarke of Barton County took the 100m hurdles with a wind-aided 13.84 seconds (4.1m/s). Chenessa Davis of Cloud County was fourth in 14.71.

Corey Ottey of Cloud County won the men’s high jump with a personal best 2.07m, the seventh best effort in the NJCAA so far this year.

Fabian Campbell of Ft Scott Community College won the men’s 800m in a new best 1:51.69 minutes, beating Nichalas Power of Cloud County (1:51.84), with Adrian Nethersole of Barton County fifth in 1:53.18 and his teammate Corlando Chambers sixth in 1:53.61.

At the Region XI Championships, NJCAA leader Tyrice Taylor of Indian Hills Community College improved on last year’s second place when he won the men’s 800m, running 1:48.98.

He will seek to defend his NJCAA national title in a few weeks.

Keveroy Venson, also of Indian Hills, was fifth in the men’s 1,500m in 3:54.68.

Kaylia Kelly of Iowa Western ran a college best 23.35 (0.0m/s) to win the women’s 200m. Her teammate Tanique Taylor was fourth in the women’s 400m hurdles in 1:05.89.

Denzs Simmonds improved on last year’s fourth-place finish to win the men’s shot put with 16.99m. His Iowa Western teammate Yekini Bowen was second with 15.45m.

Bowen, who is ranked number three in the NJCAA, won the men’s discus throw with 56.72m. Simmonds, who won it last year, was third with 48.96m.

Bowen was also fifth in the hammer throw with 47.67m.

Waukeem Walters of Iowa Central finished third in the men’s triple jump with 14.63m (1.2m/s) and fifth in the men’s long jump with 7.02m (0.0m/s).