STATEN ISLAND — The New Jersey City University men's and women's track & field programs competed in one final tune-up meet prior to the 2023 New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Indoor Track & Field Championship, which take place 10 days from today, Friday, Feb. 10. The Gothic Knights participated in today's FastTrack National Invitational, which was hosted at the Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex — the same facility that NJACs will once again be held.

On the men's side, 13 Gothic Knights competed. Senior Jason Garcia (Jersey City, N.J./Dickinson) had a strong showing the 60-meter dash and placed 16th overall out of 55 runners with a time of 7.39. Rookie Walter Pierce (East Orange, N.J./St. Benedict's Prep), who competed in three events on the day, ran a 7.86 in the event in his 60m collegiate debut. He also PRed in the 200-meter dash with a 24.73 and notched a leap of 5.98 meters to place 18th overall out of 41 jumpers in the men's long jump.

Thrower Mahkai Winston (Union, N.J./Union) had respectable showings in the throwing events, as well, with 10.80 meters in the shot put and 12.12 meters in the weight throw. Among other things, the men's distance medley relay squad of seniors Jaime Tlatelpa (Jersey City, N.J./University Academy Charter) and Denilson Lopez (Elizabeth, N.J./Elizabeth), junior Topu Saha (Jersey City, N.J./William L. Dickinson) and freshman Josue Palau (Elizabeth, N.J./Dwyer Tech) combined to place sixth with a time of 11:32.05.

For the women, six different NJCU team members competed. Freshman Nyrohah Alvarenga (North Bergen, N.J./High Tech) notched a collegiate PR in the 200-meter dash with a time of 29.04, while rookie Yoselis De Jesus (San Cristobal, Dominican Republic/Loyola Polytechnic Institute) crossed the finish line in 9.18 seconds in the 60-meter dash. Senior Tiffany Ortiz (Jersey City, N.J./University Academy Charter) finished with a time of 1:04.50 in the 400-meter dash, as well. Senior Shantel Worrell (Jersey City, N.J./Snyder) competed well in the shot put and weight throw, notching tosses of 8.30 meters and 10.09 meters, respectively.

Up Next:
As mentioned, Jersey City track & field returns to action on Monday, Feb. 20, for the 2023 NJAC Indoor Championships, which will be hosted by Farmingdale State College at Ocean Breeze. Action is scheduled to begin at 4:00 p.m.