EWING, N.J. – Day two of the 2022 New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Outdoor Track & Field Championships, hosted by The College of New Jersey on Sunday and Monday, May 8-9, was a very strong day for the New Jersey City University squads – especially for the men's sprinters, who combined for five All-NJAC awards over two events.
 
Let us know if you have heard this song before – senior co-captain Dave Etienne (Jersey City, N.J./Dickinson) reeled in a pair of All-Conference nods. After a slight disappointment on day one, having not qualified for the finals in the men's 200m, the Jersey City sprinter still managed to place in the 400m prelims to lock up a spot in that finals event. Additionally, he was part of the men's 4x100 and 4x400 meter relays for NJCU.
 
The second non-decathlon/heptathlon event on Monday was the men's 4x100m and the Gothic Knights put in their best performance of the season – one that would have qualified for the finals at last week's Penn Relays – and placed third overall (a podium finish) to garner Honorable Mention All-NJAC honors. The team was made up of seniors Roger Campbell (Jersey City, N.J./Dickinson) and Etienne, as well as juniors Jason Garcia (Jersey City, N.J./Dickinson) and Tyneil Jackson (Jersey City, N.J./Ferris). All four now boast All-Conference distinction.
 
However, Etienne was not finished yet as, six events later was the men's 400-meter final. After placing fourth in yesterday's prelims with a time of 50.39, Etienne turned on the jets in today's final. He placed second overall with a time of 49.16 to take home Second Team All-NJAC accolades. This was the second-fastest time in the 400m – indoor or outdoor – for Etienne.
 
Other competitors to score for the Gothic Knights – who, as a team finished eighth overall on the men's side – were sophomore co-captain Jake Sisk (Piscataway, N.J./Piscataway) and the 4x400m. Five events after Etienne's performance in the 400m, Sisk came in with a seventh-place finish in the 800-meter race with a time of 1:58.30 (0:01.20 slower than his career-best from last weekend). Sisk and Etienne were also joined by Campbell and junior Adnan Kpodo (Irvington, N.J./Irvington) in the day's final race – the men's 4x400 – and the quartet finished fifth overall with a season-best time of 3:27.43.
 
Freshman Ashley Adames (Jersey City, N.J./County Prep) highlighted the action on the women's side. After advancing through the preliminary round yesterday in the 400-meter hurdles event, she placed eighth in the finals today to score for the Green and Gold with a career-best time of 1:15.28 – good enough to qualify for the 2022 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championships in the event.
 
Adames was also joined on the eighth-place 4x100-meter relay by fellow rookie Nyla Body and juniors Lamya Young (Audubon, N.J./Audubon) and Tiffany Ortiz (Jersey City, N.J./University Academy Charter). The team notched a season-best time of 55.54. The 4x400m team also scored for NJCU with an eighth-place time of 4:42.61. The team was comprised of Adames, Ortiz, Boyd and sophomore Jackeline Lopez (Elizabeth, N.J./Elizabeth).
 
On the field side of things, sophomore Shantel Worrell (Jersey City, N.J./Snyder) notched a personal-record throw of 30.86m in discus to place 11th and up her ECAC qualifying seed. Fellow thrower, freshman Evie Tahmazian (Tinton Falls, N.J./Monmouth Regional) notched PRs in all three of her events, the shot put (8.70m), discus (25.14m) and hammer throw (30.14m) – the last one being an ECAC-qualifying toss.
 
Up Next:
The Gothic Knights return to the track once more before the 2022 ECAC Championships for the Swarthmore College Last Chance Meet on Monday, May 16, beginning at 4:00 p.m. in Swarthmore, Pa.