THIBODAUX, La. – For the first time in program history, the Nicholls State University men's track & field team will be represented at the NCAA East Regional Meet as Colonel sprinter Nisaiah Bennett will compete in the 200-meter dash in Lexington, Kentucky next week.
 
The opening round of the 200 will be held on Wednesday, May 27 at 8:45 PM (EST). Bennett earned his spot in the East Regional meet after clocking a personal best time of 20.67 at LSU's Alumni Gold in late April.
 
The Franklin native had an excellent outdoor season as he set multiple school records across multiple events on the track. He set the school record in the men's 100m dash with a time of 10.38 at the Louisiana Classics. Bennett also joined Calahan Leahy, Connor Gil, and Jonnell "Deuce" Scott to set the school record in the 4x100m relay where they clocked a time of 40.59 to place seventh at the LSU Alumni Gold.
 
Bennet shined in the Pelican Relays where he won the 200m race with a time of 21.21 and placed second in the 100m dash with a time of 10.50. He also placed fourth in the 400m race (49.05) at the Strawberry Relays. Bennett ended the season with a fifth-place mark in the 200 at the Southland Conference Championships (20.72).
 
Nicholls Track & Field head coach Stefanie Slekis spoke about Bennett's accomplishment and how it feels to have him represent the Colonels on the bigger stage.
 
"I am so excited for Nisaiah to have this opportunity; Coach Cameron Bolt has done a tremendous job with his event group this season and helping every student-athlete dream big and then put in the work to reach their full potential," Slekis said.  "Nisaiah has been competing very well the last month and we know he will maximize this opportunity to race the best in the east for NCAA Division I Wednesday with the goal of advancing to the next round Friday. This is huge for our program as well and I want to thank our University President Dr. Clune and Athletic Director JT for creating the opportunity for men's track & field to compete and represent Nicholls first in the Southland and now Nisaiah has taken that opportunity to represent Nicholls at a national level."