By: Con Marshall
CSC Sports Information
Chadron State College’s sensational sophomore long jumper, Isaac Grimes, won the silver medal at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Kingsville, Texas, on Thursday evening.
Grimes, who was the only one of the 20 contestants to exceed 25 feet on all six of his attempts, hit 8.08 meters, or 26 feet, 6 ¼ inches, on his final jump to take the runner-up honors. Abraham Seaneke, a senior from West Texas A&M at Canyon, went 8.16 meters, or three inches farther, on his next to last attempt to win the event.
Freshman Ryan Brown of Lincoln University at Jefferson City, Missouri, jumped 26-1 ½ on both of his last two attempts to place third. No one else exceeded 26 feet, but all nine of the finalists went at least 25-2 ½.
Grimes also leaped 26-3 on the fifth of his six jumps. That exceeded his previous career-best of 26-1 early in this season’s indoor competition. The latter mark led Division II the entire indoor season, and Grimes won the gold medal at the national indoor championship by going 25-8 ¾ on March 8 at Pittsburg, Kansas.
As a freshman in 2018, the Moreno Valley, California, native placed sixth at the national indoor meet at 24-9 and was fifth outdoors at 24-6 ½.
“Isaac was terrific again today,” Chadron State Coach Riley Northrup said late Thursday. “He had a whole string of great jumps. So did a lot of the other guys. The competition was outstanding. A fairly strong cross wind may have helped.”
The national meet record of 8.13 meters (26-8 ¼) was set by Wilber Walker of Lincoln University in 2006. Northrup said that because of the wind, it’s doubtful that Seaneke’s winning mark will go into the books as the record.
Seaneke also was among the long jump contestants at last year’s national outdoor championships and this year’s indoor championships, but he was ninth a year ago (24-3 ¾) and eighth in March (24-4 ½). His long jump best entering this year’s national meet was 25-5 ¼, putting him in a tie for fourth and fifth place.
Grimes ranked third at 25-7 ¼ and Brown was second at 25-11. The national leader entering Thursday’s showdown was Dyshon Vaughn, a freshman from meet host Texas A&M-Kingsville, with a mark of 26-4 ¼. He finished sixth at 25-4.
Grimes will lock horns with Seaneke and Brown again Friday during the triple jump. Seaneke has the Division II best mark of 52-6 ¾, Brown is second at 52-6 and Grimes is 20th at 49-3 ½.
However, Grimes can’t be counted out in the event. He went to this year’s NCAA indoor Meet in 11th place with a best of 49-3 ¾, and was the silver medalist with a career-best of 51-8 ½. Brown was the winner at 52-6 ½ and Seaneke finished seventh at 50-1 ½.
Seaneke placed fourth in the triple jump at last year’s outdoor meet by going 51-4 ½. Grimes did not qualify in the triple jump at the 2018 meet and Brown, a native of Jamaica, was still in high school.