The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

Sprinter Warren Fraser has booked his trip to the 2012 Olympic Games. However, he fell short in his bid of reaching the final of the men's 100 meters at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

Competing on day one at the Drake Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday, Fraser ran a personal best of 10.18 seconds that matched the A qualifying time for the London Olympics.

His time surpassed the previous best mark of 10.24 posted by Derrick Atkins in Clemson, South Carolina, on May 11 that was equal to the B standard for the Olympics.

Atkins, in his comeback after a series of injuries hampered his process since he won the silver at the 2007 World Championships in Osaka, Japan, will now have to do the A standard in order to join Fraser in London.

Competing for the University of Clemson, Fraser got third in the first of three heats in the preliminaries of the men's 100. He placed 13th overall, missing out on a spot in the final.

Fraser, in his junior year, was one of six Bahamians who competed on the first of the three-day championships.

Raymond Higgs, who fell short of the B qualifying mark of 8.10m or 26-feet, 7-inches in the men's long jump at a meet in Fayetteville, Arkansas, on April 4, got third in his specialty.

The University of Arkansas' sophomore leapt 8.05m (26-5) on his opening jump but struggled the rest of the competition. His series of jumps were 8.04m (26-4 1/2), two fouls, 7.94m (26-0 3/4) and 7.89m (25-10 3/4).

Marquise Goodwin, a junior at the University of Texas, won with 8.23m (27-0) on his last jump, followed by Louisiana State University's junior Damar Forbes with 8.09m (26-6 1/2) on his second attempt.

The only athlete to qualify on day one was Stephen 'Dirty' Newbold. The freshman anchored Florida State to victory in their heat of the men's 4 x 100 relay team that got third overall in 38.81.

V'Alonee Robinson, a senior, just fell short in her anchor leg for the University of Auburn as they finished third in their heat of the women's 4 x 100 relay in 44.01 for ninth overall in the preliminaries.

And there were two competitors in the men's 400 hurdles but neither advanced out of the preliminaries in their head-to-head clash in the same heat.

Nathan Arnett, a junior at Mississippi State, came the closest when he got third in 50.53 for 10th overall.

Grand Bahamian Jeffery Gibson, a junior at Oral Roberts, was fourth in 50.72 for 12th overall.

The winning time in the heat was 49.37 by Amaechi Morton, a senior at Stanford, who ended up with the fastest qualifying time. Jamele Mason, a senior at Texas Tech, was second in 49.49 for the second fastest time.

Last night, the lone Bahamian to compete was Ivanique Kemp in the women's 100 hurdles. The University of Arkansas junior clocked 13.13 for 13th overall, missing a spot in the final. She was fourth in the second of three heats. The fastest qualifying time was 12.71 by Bridgette Owens of Clemson. The eighth and final qualifier was Donique' Flemings, a junior at Texas A&M, in 13.05.

NOTE: At the Adidas Grand Prix in New York this weekend, Trevor Barry and Grand Bahamian Donald Thomas are expected to renew their rivalry as they go head-to-head in the men's high jump. Also, Eleuthera native Chris 'Fireman' Brown and Grand Bahamian Demetrius Pinder are all set to compete in the men's 400m in the one-day meet on Saturday.