NORMAL — Laila Gaynor was already back home in Baltimore when she received the call from Alabama A&M head track & field coach Andrew Murphy that she may want to be ready in case she had the opportunity to compete in next week’s NCAA Division I East First Round.
The official list of East Women’s First Round declared athletes was announced this afternoon with Gaynor being selected to compete in the 400 meters in Jacksonville, Fla.
Gaynor, who has had a breakout junior season, logged the nation’s 57th-best time of 53.08 in winning the 400-meter at the Georgia Tech Invitational. However, to qualify for the NCAA East First Round, she needed to be inside the Top 50. She achieved that mark Thursday afternoon when she moved up to 46th.
Gaynor will now begin her quest for an opportunity to the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Ore., May 29 at Jax Track at Hodges Stadium on the campus of the University of North Florida. Her opening round is 7:20 p.m. (CT) and she must finish within the top 24 to advance to the quarterfinals on May 31. For Gaynor to advance to next month’s NCAA Championship, he would need to finish among the top 12.
This season, Gaynor won the 400 at two meets – the SWAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships (53.39) and Georgia Tech Invitational. She also placed sixth at the Crimson Tide Invitational in 54.47 and ninth at the USF Alumni Invitational (54.33).
Georgia’s Aaliyah Butler and Auburn’s Vimbayi Maisorewa hold the top two times this season, running in 49.44 and 50.25, respectively.
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