HUTCHINSON, Kan. - Wrapping up the season, Highland Community College delivered five top-ten finishes - including a near-miss of a podium spot in the pole vault - at the 2025 NJCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championship last weekend. Despite being one of only three competitors to clear the 4.66 meter mark in his first attempt, Nathaniel Giffin was edged out at 4.76m, claiming fourth in the pole vault for the Scotties.

Highland was represented by a sizable contingent on both sides of the docket this year, with five women - Shanteria Washington, DiaMonae Thomas, Alexia Lewis, Jola Felix, Alyana Wallace - earning return trips after qualifying in 2024 as well. Thomas delivered a big improvement over her 2024 performance in the 100 hurdles, finishing 10th overall. Her mark of 14.26 seconds was a personal best and more than a second faster than her 2024 time (15.42s), but she missed advancing by .12.

HCC's 4x100 meter relay team also improved on its 2024 time, with Lewis, Washington, Thomas and Felix notching a time of 46.26, cutting just under a second from the mark posted by Lewis, J'Nya Demming, Felix and Washington last year. Lewis also posted a better mark in the long jump in 2025, hitting 5.42m in Hutchinson. Unfortunately, the improvements didn't translate into higher finishes, as the 2025 field was considerably stronger than 2024's qualifiers.

On the men's side, Highland's entire contingent came in as rookies on the big stage, but Giffin and Kewarny Fletcher stepped up like seasoned veterans. Just as in the 2025 NJCAA Indoor Track and Field Championship, Fletcher advanced out of the preliminary heats in the 800 meters. The Kingston, Jamaica, sophomore won his heat race to earn the fourth seed in the finals, but he wasn't able to chase down the leaders, finishing seventh overall.

Giffin pushed the field in the pole vault, missing just one attempt in the first four heights. He joined eventual winner Samuel Estrada Ospina (New Mexico JC) and runner-up Tony Keene (Vincennes) in clearing 4.66m on his first attempt, but the freshman from Stanberry, Mo., took the bar down on all three attempts at 4.76m.

The Scotties also advanced to the finals in the men's 4x100 relay, as Charles Shaw, Korey Mosley, Kylan Shelton and Tierre Hamilton shook off a rough outing at the NJCAA Region 6 Championships to post a time of 40.29. Their finals mark of 40.90 wasn't enough to move up the ranks.