A Glimpse at the Stars

On February 17 in Birmingham, Alabama, the SWAC Indoor Track & Field Championships will start its first of two days as 12 teams battle for conference supremacy.

Last season Alabama State won the championship, unseating Prairie View after its two-year reign. Prior to that Alabama State was the champion from 2009-2020.

Let's take a look at some of the top athletes that will be competing for gold medals over the weekend.

Tionna Brown - Florida A&M

Going into the meet, Tionna Brown has the fastest 60 meters time out of all SWAC sprinters. Brown returns to the SWAC after two seasons at LSU. In 2021, she competed at Alabama State where she won three gold medals at the SWAC indoor meet. She won the 60 meters, 200 meters and was a fourth of the 1,600-meter relay championship squad. While at LSU she earned All-America honors and now at Florida A&M she hopes to return to the top of the mountain in the SWAC. She ran her top time so far this season in the 60 meters with a fourth place finish of 7.36 seconds at the Badgers Windy City Invite, in Chicago, Illinois, Feb. 9. Brown and Howard's Kailei Collins were the only sprinters from HBCUs in the final that feature competitors from the Big Ten and Big Twelve.

Brown will also compete in the 200 meters. She currently has the SWAC's third fastest time this season at 23.81 seconds. That was a third place result at the South Carolina Invitational in Columbia, on Feb. 3.

Nya Blocker - Florida A&M

One of Brown's biggest threats is on her team. Freshman Nia Blocker has the SWAC's top 200 meters time and third best 60 meters finish. On Feb. 9, she won the 200 meters at the Badgers Windy City Invite with a time of 23.63. At the South Carolina Invitational, Blocker recorded her best 60 meters time of the year at 7.39 seconds.

Asjah Harris - Prairie View

Prairie View's Asjah Harris is looking to beat both Brown and Blocker. She dominated the SWAC outdoor meet last spring taking gold medals in the 100 meters, 200 meters, 400-meter relay and 1,600-meter relay. Last season she won the indoor 200 meters gold in the SWAC and is currently second in the conference in the 60 meters and 200 meters. Her top 60 meters time this season was 7.38 seconds in a third place effort at the New Mexico Team Open, in Albuquerque on Jan. 26. On that same day she had a fourth place finish in her top 200 time of the season at 23.57.

Shamia Jones - Alabama State

The SWAC's queen of the 800 meters is Shamia Jones of Alabama State. This senior from Albany Georgia has won two straight 800 meters gold medals during indoor season. Last season she also won championships in the 800 meters, the mile and as a member of the distance medley relay. Jones also took a bronze in the 3,000 meters and 5,000 meters. Jones has won the distance medley relay three straight seasons. This season Jones has the SWAC's top 800 meters time of 2:09.66, mile time of 5:11.50 and 3,000 meters time of 11:04.36.

Others to Watch

Alabama A&M's Ana-Liese Torian and Florida A&M's Kimeone McLeod enter the SWAC meet with the top 60-meters hurdles time. Both scored finishes of 8.35 seconds. Torian's was at the Vanderbilt Invitational, McLeod's was at the South Carolina Invitational.

Lillian Dudley of Jackson State won both the SWAC indoor and outdoor shot put championships in 2023. She currently leads all throwers with her 14.57-meter mark recorded at the UAB Vulcan Invitational in Birmingham, Alabama. She also enters the championships with the third best mark of the season in the weight throw at 16.24. She's behind Alabama A&M's Briana Cox at 17.92 meters. Cox placed seventh at last year's SWAC indoor meet. Southern's Lawrenee' Hart is second at 16.25 meters. She won the bronze medal at last year's championships.