TAMPA — The USF track and field program is sending a school-record 12 athletes to this week's NCAA Championships in Eugene, OR. While the Bulls are enjoying a run of success, they also want to make a statement at the nationals.
"We realize it’s the absolute height of competition at the NCAA final round. You’ve just gotta be ready to go at that time," USF head coach Erik Jenkins said before practice. "You wanna be healthy, you wanna be happy, and you wanna be excited about the opportunity. I certainly believe our student-athletes are ready for the opportunity."
Senior sprinter and jumper Shaniya Benjamin's USF career almost didn't happen. The previous coaching staff didn't seriously recruit her when she was competing for Alonso High School, but Jenkins, who was hired in 2019, started recruiting her immediately.
"Coach Jenkins was upfront about how the program looked and how the program was gonna go, and the direction he wanted to go," Benjamin said. "So I liked the up-front honesty he was giving me. I feel like this would be the program for me- that would develop me to where I want to be."
Benjamin has gone on to break four school records (outdoor 200 meters, indoor 4x400 relay, outdoor 4x100 & 4x400 relays), win four AAC championships (2023 outdoor 4x400 relay, 2022 indoor long jump, 2021 outdoor long jump, 2021 outdoor 4x400), and qualify for four NCAA championships.
"It has been satisfying watching her break a lot of school records," Jenkins added. "She’s been at the NCAA Championships all four years. We’re certainly excited about watching her continue to compete at this level."
Benjamin is used to competing on big stages. While she admits the NCAA Championships are a big deal, she says it's still possible to treat it like any other meet.
"You’ve done this before. This isn’t something new to you," Shaniya said, describing her mentality. "You step up on the track and it’s the same race plan that you had all year long."
Regardless of the outcome, it's been a successful ride for Benjamin as part of the Bulls program.
"I stayed home. Bay Area, Bay-made. That’s how I feel. I feel excited to know that my legacy, my name is etched into the history books."
Here is a look at USF's schedule for the NCAA Championships:
The men’s competition opens on Wednesday, June 5. At 4:32 p.m. PST. Zayquan Lincoln, Jaleel Croal, Shevioe Reid, and Abdul-Rasheed Saminu will compete in the 4x400m relay Semifinal. The four men enter the event as the two-seed after running the second-fastest qualifying time (38.64) overall in the Quarterfinals.
At 5:46 p.m. PST Saminu will compete in the 100m dash Semifinal. Saminu qualified for this event by running the eighth-fastest qualifying time (10.06) in the East Quarterfinals and will be seeded 19th overall.
At 6:00 p.m. PST, Goodness Iredia will be the first Bull with a shot at a national championship as he competes in the long jump Final. Iredia is seeded ninth overall after finishing third in the East Quarterfinals (7.75m / 25’-5.25”).
While the Iredia is competing for a title in the in-field, at 6:30 p.m. PST Devontie Archer will compete in the 400m hurdles Semifinal on the track. Archer is seeded 15th after running the 10th-fastest East Quarterfinals qualifying time (50.22).
At 6:44 p.m. PST, South Florida will be the only school this year to have three competitors in the 200m dash Semifinal, as 18-seed Reid (20.32), 20-seed Saminu (20.36), and 22-seed Croal (20.38) look to finish in the top-12 and move onto the finals.
To close out the first day of NCAA Championship action, Tre’Sean Bouie, Nathan Metelus, Reid, and Archer will compete in the 4x400m relay at 7:48 p.m. PST. The men enter the event with the 11 seed after running the sixth-fastest East First Round qualifying time. The Bulls will also bring Gabriel Moronta, Markel Jones, Darian Mills, and Daunte O’Banion as alternates.
The women’s competition opens on Thursday, June 6 at 8:48 p.m. PST, Shaniya Benjamin, Zahria Allers-Liburd, Terren Peterson, and Amenda Saint Louis will compete in the 4x400m relay Semifinal. The four women ran a program-record qualifying time (3:29.37) in the Quarterfinals.
