Staten Island, NY – Sophomore Tinashe Bure of the Monroe University men's indoor track and field team became the first member of the team to qualify for the NJCAA National Championships, earning a spot for his performance in the 1000m at the St. Thomas Spartan Invitational at Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex on Friday.

Bure clocked in at 2:28.24 in his season debut, earning first of 23 competitors in the event. His performance was a personal best for the cross-country standout.

Sophomores Banele Mkabela and Siyabonga Mbatha also made their debuts at the St. Thomas Spartan Invitational, running personal best times and placing third and fourth, respectively. The two narrowly missed qualification for nationals in the event.

Four Mustangs ran in the 200m dash, with sophomore Dwayne Fleming leading the pack with a second place finish and a personal best 21.67 time of completion. He missed qualification for nationals by 0.07 seconds.

Rounding out the Mustang competitors in the 200m were freshman Cleon Joseph (22.92), sophomore Nickoy Henry (23.44),  freshman Elijah Upsher (25.23) and sophomore Davionn Thomas (25.23).

Mkabela clocked a major personal time in the 3000m on Friday, recording a time of 8:38.73 to take eighth overall out of 54 runners. He came three seconds away from national qualification. Freshman Nkayenzi Ziqubu ran a 9:02.17 in the 3000m alongside Mkabela.

Bure and Mbatha competed in the mile for the first time in their collegiate careers, placing fifth and 14^th, respectively. Bure secured a time of 4:22.41, while Mbatha ran the mile at a pace of 4:24.97.

In the 400m, freshman Elijah Carswell ran a time of 55.26 in his first 400m race of the season.

Sophomore Joel Bennett and freshman Micah McHardy closed out the competition with performances in the long jump. Bennett jumped a distance of 5.73 meters, while McHardy jumped a distance of 5.20.

The Mustangs will make their first appearance at The Armory in Manhattan next Friday, January 19, when they compete in the Ramapo Opener. The meet is scheduled to begin at 10:00 am.
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE UNIVERSITY
The athletic program at Monroe University encompasses a total of 28 teams competing across nine sports. There are 20 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as the Monroe University marching band, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
 
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeUMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (@MonroeMustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs).