Despite a three-hour rain delay for the second straight day, 16-year old Trisa Nickoley (unattached) broke an 11-year old record in the intermediate girls 800m with her winning time of 2:08.94. Nickoley, a native of Shawnee, Kansas, was competing at the 2002 USA Track & Field Youth Athletics National Championships at Miami-Dade Tropical Park Stadium, broke Liz Mueller’s 1991 record time of 2:09.69. This meet is the second stop of the Verizon Youth Series.

In other 800m finals, Anya Curtis (Mt. Airy TC) and Julian Wood (Metro Eagles) won the bantam girls and boys titles. Curtis won with a time of 2:29.80, while Wood won in 2:26.50. Shamicka Beswick and Brandon Harris, both competing for MNWX, won their respective races in the midget girls and boys race. Beswick ran 2:23.82, while Harris ran 2:18.24. Quicksilver’s Christopher Woods won the intermediate boys 800m with a time of 1:54.59. In the youth girls division, Latavia Thomas (Keystone) and Reginald Hopkins (Metro-Dade) won 800m titles in 2:13.32 and 2:00.67 respectively. In the young women and men’s division, Briene Simmons (Jaguar TC) and Davon Johnson (Twin Cities) won their 800m races in 2:12.50 and 1:53.41 respectively.

Off the track, the young women’s javelin was won by Brittany Souslin (unattached) with a mark of 31.92 meters/104-09.00. Jenny Glodowski (Cornhuskers Flyers) and Harold Young (Mid-West City Track Team) won the shot put with marks of 12.51m/41-00.50 and 18.31m/60-01.00 respectively. 2002 USA Junior TJ champion Rafeeq Curry (Curry-Guice) won his event with a mark of 14.88m/48-10.00. Curry will travel next week to the 2002 World Junior Track & Field Championships in Kingston, Jamaica. In the young women’s triple jump, Roshena Duree (Track San Francisco) won with a mark of 11.79m/38-08.25. Teddrick Brown (Hinesville Roadrunners) won the high jump with a mark of 1.80m/5-10.75.

Miami Northwest Express TC’s Pavielle Jones and Andrew Mcutchen (Tampa Rec. Trailblazers) won the intermediate girls and boys long jump, respectively. Jones won with a mark of 5.62m/18-05.25, while Mcutchen jumped 6.72m/22-00.75 to win his title. Misti Barber (Metro-Dade) won the discus throw with a toss of 42.81m/140-05, while Chad Brown (Lake Area Express) won the javelin throw with a mark of 58.52m/192-00. In the pole vault, Clint Hughes (Texas Gulfcoast Fliers) cleared 4.25m/13-11.25 to win the title. Gayle Hunter (West Valley Eagles) won her second title of the meet on Saturday with a win in the javelin throw. Hunter tossed the javelin 36.60m/120-01 for the win. She won the intermediate girls heptathlon with 4630 points. Jesse Williams (unattached) won the discus with a mark of 50.15m/164-06.

In the youth division, Deandra Doyley (Platinum TC) won her second title of the meet on Saturday, winning the high jump with a mark of 1.65m/5-05.00. Doyley won the long jump on Friday. Terrence Austin (Long Beach Sprinters) won the youth boys high jump with a mark of 1.90m/6-02.75. It was his second title of the meet after Austin won the pentathlon with a mark of 3220 points on Wednesday. KeNiya Richardson (Acorn Track Club) and Jenny Svoboda (Cornhuskers Flyers) won the triple jump and shot put respectively. Richardson jumped 10.36m/34-00.00 to win her triple jump title, while Svoboda threw 14.18m/46-06.25 to win the shot title. Darius Savage (MLK Blasters) won the discus with a mark of 50.85m/166-10. Theodore O’Neil (Long Beach Sprinters) jumped 6.15m/20-02.25 to win the long jump.

Christie Leverette (Gazelle TC) won her third title of the meet with a win in the midget girls shot put. Leverette tossed the shot 10.35m/33-11.50 on Saturday, after winning the high jump on Friday and the pentathlon on Thursday. Joseph Garrett (Metro-Dade) won the midget boys mini javelin with a mark of 36.80m/120-09.

In the bantam division, Xavier Mackey (Metro-Dade) won the mini javelin with a mark of 20.98m/68-10, while Andrew Myles (Long Beach Sprinters) claimed the high jump title with a mark of 1.20m/3-11.25. Chelsea Curry (Nashville Illusions Track) won the shot put with a mark of 7.67m/25-02.00.

On the track on Saturday, finals were run in the 200m and 800m. 2001 World Youth double gold medalist Stephanie Smith led the way with a win in the young women’s 200m in 23.88. Jenks America TC and Metro-Dade both had two athletes win in their respective finals. Jay Cooper (22.33) won the intermediate boys 200m, while McKale Davis (10:28.37) won the young women’s 3000m. Brianna Streeter (29.31) and Rannall Hall (29.03) won the bantam girls and boys 200m titles.

In the midget girls and boys 200m, Charlene Fuller (Platinum TC) and Stephen Hill (Show Time) won their titles in 26.62 and 25.79 respectively. In the youth division, Darel Scott (Philadelphia Express) won the 200m in 22.90 and Elizabeth Olear (VUTC) won the 200 title in 24.30. Courtney Champion (New Horizon) won the intermediate girls 200 title in 24.07, while Donnell Diggs (Afterburners TC) won the young men’s 200m crown in 21.39.

Earlier in the day, the 3000m finals were run before the rains stopped the competition. Jenny Morgan (unattached) won the youth girls 3000m in 10:28.87, while Nathan Frasier (Gazelle TC) won the youth boys title in 9:45.91. Merideth Snow (Cornhusker Flyers) won the intermediate girls title in 10:17.22, while Michael Webley (Brooklyn Heat) won the intermediate boys title in 9:03.90. In the young men’s division, Joel Hamilton (unattached) won the 5000m title in 15:39.43.

In order to be eligible to compete at the 2002 USA Track & Field Youth Athletics National Championships, a competitor must be a U.S. citizen and born after July 29, 1983. Athletes must compete in one of five age groups, determined by birth year. Those age divisions are Bantam (1992 or later), Midget (1990-91), Youth (1988-89), Intermediate (1986-87) and Young Men/Women (1984-85). Athletes born in 1983 are also eligible if they do not turn 19 on or prior to July 29, 2002.

This meet will serve as one of the selection meets for the 2003 World Youth Athletics Championships, July 10-13, 2003, in Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. Athletes can also qualify for Team USA at the 2002 USATF National Junior Olympic Championships in Omaha, Neb., July 23-28.

For more information on the 2002 USA Track & Field Youth Athletics National Championships and the Verizon Youth Series, including complete results from this year’s event, visit the USATF website at www.usatf.org.