Harrison Wins Third Semifinal in 400 Hurdles, Leads 4×1 to National Final as Well

CLEMSON, SC – Clemson sophomore Keni Harrison won her semifinal in the 400 hurdles and ran leadoff leg for the Tigers’ 4×100 relay that qualified for the national final on the opening day of action at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, OR. In addition, Reggie Lewis from the Tiger men’s team qualified for the 100 dash final on Wednesday.

Harrison was smooth from the beginning of her semifinal, advancing to her first final as an individual in four appearances at an NCAA Championships competition. She had the third-fastest time (56.35) Wednesday and will run the final at 7:30 PM ET on Friday. Harrison is the first Tiger female to advance to the national final in the 400 hurdles since Nikkie Bouyer in 1999.

An hour earlier, Harrison ran lead leg for Clemson’s relay, which posted a time of 43.70 and was second to earn an automatic spot in the finals for a fourth consecutive season. She teamed with Brianna Rollins, Stormy Kendrick and Dezerea Bryant in the semifinals.

Bryant took to the track an hour later in the semifinals of the 100 dash, where she ran a solid 11.27 in a fast opening heat. She officially finished ninth out of the 24 sprinters, one spot shy of qualifying for the final. Bryant is scheduled for the semifinals of the 200 dash on Thursday.

The men’s 4×100 relay nearly qualified for the finals as well on Wednesday. The team of Lewis, Warren Fraser, Brunson Miller and Tevin Hester combined to run a season-best 39.46, which was ultimately good for 10th place out of the 24 relays. The Tigers, who missed the final spot by less than two tenths of a second, had a bit of a slower second exchange that proved costly.

Lewis was the only one of the three Tigers in the 100 semifinals to advance to Friday’s final. The sophomore transfer from Kennesaw State continued his late-season momentum. He ran 10.07, with the help of a +3.0 tailwind Wednesday. His time is No. 5 in Clemson history, moving Justin Murdock out of the top five on the Tigers’ career performance list. Hester was 14th out of the 24 competitors with a time of 10.24, while Fraser was 21st after coming in at 10.34.

Mimi Land competed in her first NCAA Championships meet Wednesday. The freshman from Albany, GA leaped 19’7″ in the long jump, putting her in 20th place.

The action continues Thursday, starting with the women’s 200 semifinals at 7:00 PM ET. In addition to semifinals of the high hurdles, Jameel Abdul-Mateen will be in action in the men’s long jump. Video coverage will be available live on ESPN3.com and on mobile devices at the WatchESPN app.