Katou Kouami Hits National Provisional Mark as UDC Women Shine at VMI Invitational

Lexington, Va. — The University of the District of Columbia women's track & field team delivered a standout performance at the VMI Invitational, highlighted by a national provisional qualifying mark from Emmanuela Katou-Kouami in the weight throw, along with multiple points-scoring finishes, qualifiers, and season-best performances across the meet.

Senior Emmanuela Katou Kouami produced the top performance of the day for the Firebirds, winning the weight throw with a mark of 17.68 meters (58-00.25). The throw not only earned first place and 10 team points, but also met the NCAA Division II National Provisional Qualifying Standard, which places her in the top 20 amongst the top throwers in the country.

UDC opened the meet with a strong showing in the 60-meter dash, as Kyndra Hines and Kayla Cooper both advanced from prelims with matching qualifying times of 7.80s. In the final, Cooper placed sixth (7.80s) while Hines finished eighth (7.82s). Hines continued her strong day in the 60-meter hurdles, qualifying in prelims before placing third in the final with a season-best 8.83s, earning six points. Kayleigh Shelton also scored in the event, placing seventh with a time of 8.96s.

In the 800 meters, Samantha Morrison placed fourth with a time of 2:19.94, contributing five points. Aksa Jepkogei scored for the Firebirds in the 3,000 meters, finishing seventh in 12:28.92.

Senior Zoe Shaw turned in another strong performance, finishing third in the high jump after clearing 1.66 meters (5-05.25), which was just shy of the national provisional mark of 1.67m. Shaw also added a sixth-place finish in the triple jump with a season-best 11.06 meters, contributing three additional points. In the long jump, Cooper placed sixth with a season-best 5.40 meters, while freshman Gianna Wiggins recorded a mark of 4.92 meters.

UDC turned in several strong performances on the track, led by Cooper and Tukey Francis. Cooper posted a season-best 25.77s in the 200 meters, adding to her productive weekend across multiple events. Francis followed with a season-best 25.93s in the 200 meters and went on to record a season-best 59.88s in the 400 meters. Janel Baxter also hit a PRin the 200m with a time of 26.11s

The Firebirds will look to carry this momentum into their next meet when they compete at the East Coast Conference Championship on February 15.