BATON ROUGE – After firing out of the blocks in its 2010 recruiting class with the signing of eight student-athletes to National Letters of Intent back in February, the LSU track and field program is pleased to announce the addition of four more signees as it continues to build momentum for the 2011 season.
The Tigers have signed a pair of junior college stars in jumper Kyron Blaise of Toco, Trinidad & Tobago, and sprinter Riker Hylton of Linstead, Jamaica, while the Lady Tigers have inked JUCO standout Jonique Day of St. Mary, Jamaica, and prep jumper Lynnika Pitts of Prairieville, La.
LSU has now signed a total of 12 student-athletes as part of the Class of 2010 with the Tigers adding four signees and the Lady Tigers adding eight signees for the 2011 season.
“We feel like the 12 recruits we have signed to this point are as deep and as talented as any group we have signed in recent years. We are very excited about the potential of this group and the contribution each will make for us at the conference and national levels,” said LSU head coach Dennis Shaver. “We are ready to finish strong as we continue to recruit the very best student-athletes to join our program here at LSU.”
A three-time National Junior College Athletics Association All-American while competing for the Texans of South Plains College, Blaise has earned the reputation as the No. 1-ranked jumps prospect in the junior college ranks as he is the reigning national champion in the triple jump. He was crowned champion of the triple jump at the 2009 NJCAA Outdoor Championships with a winning leap of 51 feet, 7 ¾ inches.
2010 LSU Track & Field Signing Class
| Women | |||||
| Rebecca Alexander |
Sprints |
5-6 |
Baton Rouge, La. (Belaire HS/Southwest Mississippi CC) | ||
| Jenna Baker |
Javelin |
5-7 |
Covington, La. (Mandeville HS) | ||
| Jen Clayton |
Jumps |
5-7 |
Suffern, N.Y. (Suffern HS) | ||
| Jonique Day |
Sprints |
5-9 |
St. Mary, Jamaica (St. Jago HS/Essex CC) | ||
| Karen Henning |
Throws |
5-5 |
Kings Park, N.Y. (St. Anthony’s HS) | ||
| Lynnika Pitts |
Jumps |
5-8 |
Prairieville, La. (East Ascension HS) | ||
| Annie Simoneaux |
Javelin |
5-7 |
Rayne, La. (Rayne HS) | ||
| Jasmin Stowers |
Hurdles |
5-9 |
Pendleton, S.C. (Pendleton HS) | ||
| Men | |||||
| Kyron Blaise |
Jumps |
5-11 |
Toco, Trinidad & Tobago (Toco Composite School/South Plains JC) | ||
| Keith Griffith |
Middle Distance |
6-1 |
Burlington, N.J. (Florence Township Memorial HS) | ||
| Riker Hylton |
Sprints |
5-11 |
Linstead, Jamaica (St. Jago HS/Essex CC) | ||
| Horatio Williams |
Sprints |
6-2 |
Starkville, Miss. (Oxford HS/Hinds CC) | ||
After finishing the 2009 season with a top wind-aided mark of 53-1 ¾, Blaise carried that momentum into the 2010 indoor season during which he established a new lifetime personal best of 53-5 while winning the triple jump title at the Texas Tech Classic in Lubbock on Feb. 6.
Not only that, but Blaise is also a standout long jumper who boasts a wind-legal best of 25-11 in the event after capturing the long jump crown at the Hampton Games in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, a year ago.
By signing Hylton to a National Letter of Intent, the Tigers have also added the services of the top-ranked 400-meter runner returning to the NJCAA this season.
A product of Essex County College in Newark, N.J., Hylton captured the NJCAA Indoor championship in the 400-meter dash on March 6 after earning All-America honors with a third-place finish in the event last season at the 2009 NJCAA Outdoor Championships to wrap up his freshman campaign.
Hylton set his lifetime personal best of 45.92 in the final at the NJCAA Outdoor meet a year ago, while he also set an indoor personal best of 46.70 at the Boston University Valentine Invitational on Feb. 13 of this season. He has run the 400 meters in under 46.50 seconds a total of six times during his career.
Hylton made a name for himself as one of the premier quartermilers in his native Jamaica while attending sprint powerhouse St. Jago High School in St. Catherine, Jamaica. As a junior in 2007, Hylton won a gold medal in the 400 meters in the Class One division at the Jamaican Boys & Girls Championships, breaking the 47-second barrier for the first time with an impressive 46.28 clocking.
“The depth and quality of our men’s team has really taken a giant step in the right direction while signing two world-class athletes like Kyron Blaise and Riker Hylton,” Shaver said. “Both have the talent to come in and contribute right away toward our goal of competing for a national championship. They have a great opportunity to thrive in the competitive environment we provide here at LSU.”
The Lady Tigers have also signed a 400-meter standout from Essex County College as Day joins the team after earning a pair of All-America honors at the NJCAA Indoor Championships earlier this month.
A native of St. Mary, Jamaica, and product of St. Jago High School, Day was the bronze medalist in both the 400 meters and 600 meters at the national meet held at Eastern Illinois University. She wrapped up the 2010 indoor campaign ranked among the top quartermilers in the NJCAA with a lifetime personal best of 55.66 in the 400-meter dash set at the Boston University Valentine Invitational on Feb. 12.
Day competed primarily in the 800-meter run prior to her sophomore season at Essex CC as she competed in the event at the NJCAA Outdoor Championships as a freshman a year ago. She was also an 800-meter finalist in the Class One division at the Jamaican Boys & Girls Championships as a senior in 2008.
The Lady Tigers have also added the top jumps prospect in the state of Louisiana for the Class of 2010 by signing Pitts to a National Letter of Intent this week.
A native of Prairieville and product of East Ascension High School, Pitts boasts personal records of 5-8 in the high jump and 39-7 ¼ in the triple jump as she has captured a total of five individual state titles during her prep career that includes four high jump crowns. Pitts has won back-to-back Class 5A outdoor titles in 2008 and 2009 and back-to-back Division I indoor state titles in 2009 and 2010.
Pitts is also the defending Class 5A outdoor state champion in the triple jump after winning the high jump and triple jump at the LHSAA Class 5A Outdoor State Championships as a junior in 2009.
“We have signed four men and eight women to this point, and we are still working hard finish strong with this recruiting class,” Shaver said. “We feel like this will be one of the top classes in the country this year, and we are anxious to get them to campus and in our program as we expect another great year in 2011.”
LSU signed eight student-athletes to National Letters of Intent in February, including two future Tigers in Keith Griffith of Burlington, N.J., and Horatio Williams of Starkville, Miss., and six future Lady Tigers in Rebecca Alexander of Baton Rouge, Jenna Baker of Covington, La., Jen Clayton of Suffern, N.Y., Karen Henning of Kings Park, N.Y., Annie Simoneaux of Rayne, La., and Jasmin Stowers of Pendleton, S.C.