Laari, Egbeniyi earn First Team All-American honors

Friday, March 10

College Station, Texas

Middle Tennessee

NCAA Indoor Championships

3/11/2017 6:38:00 PM | Track & Field/Cross Country

Laari takes bronze, Egbeniyi finishes eighth

By: @MTAthletics

COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Sampson Laari and Abike Egbeniyi capped the indoor track and field season earning First Team All-America honors on the final day of the NCAA Indoor Championships at Gilliam Indoor Stadium.

Laari clocked a 4:06.11 in the men's mile run to take home the bronze and make the podium. His third-place finish also earned the junior his second career First Team All-American honors and first for an indoor season.

"I'm very excited. I wasn't expecting it necessarily. I had a tough season, but I didn't lose confidence. Coach Keith Vroman inspired me with that confidence, and it really helped. I'm glad to have him as a coach," Laari said. "After I made it to the finals I said to myself, 'I can do this,' and it paid off."

Egbeniyi closed a successful sophomore indoor campaign with an eighth-place finish in the women's 800-meter run. After a hard-fought race in the preliminaries to qualify for the finals, the Nigeria native clocked a 2:06.86.

Egbeniyi's First Team All-America honors are also the first in her Blue Raider career.

"I'm very happy. I knew it wouldn't be easy. I give God the glory," Egbeniyi said. "My main aim was to make the finals and I got there with great coaching. It's such an honor to be a First Team All-American."

With the indoor season in the books, Middle Tennessee turns its focus to the 2017 outdoor season. The Blue Raiders will travel to Atlanta for the Yellow Jacket Invitational hosted by Georgia Tech next weekend.