GAINESVILLE, Fla. (Jan. 25) | Katelynn Smith crowned Florida A&M's appearance in the RADD Sports College Invitational with its sixth win of the two-day meet. The track and field team notched seven "Top 3" finishes on Saturday, including four events where the Rattlers trailed only professional or unattached competitors. 
 
Arayana Ladson and Kurt Powdar each advanced to the 60-meter hurdle finals after placing second, behind the aforementioned talent, in their preliminary races. Smith set the standard to beat in the women's final, clocking in with a new personal record of 8.57, while Ladson's PR of 8.66 earned third, coming in after Smith and an unattached runner. 
 
A similar pattern emerged in the men's and women's 60-meter final, where Oarabile Tshosa and Dajon Clark respectively finished second (7.57) and fourth (6.73), trailing non-collegiate athletes. Clark was the fastest collegiate athlete in the men's 60-meter final, and even outran one of the four PURE Athletics competitors in the event. 
 
The Rattlers will return to action next week (Jan. 31 – Feb. 1) for the Carolina Challenge and Gamecock Challenge hosted by South Carolina. 

Top Performances (Athlete | Time/Mark | Finish) 
 
60 Hurdles (Prelim)
Kurt Powdar | 8.06 | 2/23  
Arayana Ladson | 8.90 | 2/18 
Katelynn Smith | 8.91 | 4/18
 
60 Hurdles (Final) 
Katelynn Smith | 8.57 | 1/8
Arayana Ladson | 8.66 | 3/8
Kurt Powdar | 8.11 | 4/8
 
60 (Prelim)
Dajon Clark | 6.75 | 3/64
Nya Blocker | 7.60 | 4/39
Oarabile Tshosa | 7.66 | 7/39
Azaria Whitehurst | 7.80 | 14/39
Frankleen Newah-Jarfoi | 6.98 | 15/64
Dakya Cunningham | 7.85 | 17/39
Rancesson Grace | 7.07 | 29/64
 
60 (Final) 
Oarabile Tshosa | 7.56 | 2/7  
Dajon Clark | 6.73 | 4/8  
 
800
Kirk Dawkins | 1:52.41 | 3/48
Alesia Douglas | 2:14.41 | 4/37
Tara Bert | 2:14.85 | 5/37
William Shelton | 1:56.00 | 12/48
 
Personal Record
 
Follow Florida A&M Athletics 
For complete coverage of Florida A&M athletics, download the official Florida A&M Rattler app and follow the Rattlers on social media at @FAMUAthletics (X), FAMUAth (Facebook), and @famuathletics (Instagram).