Ninfa Barnard, a Virgin Islands National Track and Field Team member, who graduated from the St. Croix Educational Complex High School, is now a senior track sensation attending the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. She captured top runner honors in Birmingham, Alabama, during the Southwestern Athletic Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships at the Birmingham Crossplex. Barnard single-handedly scored 30 of the Lady Lions’ 54 points, which were good enough to give the women’s team a fourth place finish as Alabama State University, 218 points, won the title for a fourth straight year. Prairie View A&M University, 155, and Southern University, 58, finished just ahead of the Lady Lions.
Rounding out the final women’s standings were Texas Southern University with 52 points, Mississippi Valley State University, 43, Jackson State University, 18, Alabama A&M University, 15, and Grambling State University, 10.
Barnard turned in spectacular performances in three events, setting new SWAC indoor championship records in the 3,000 meters with a time of 10:05.98 and in the 800 meters with a time of 2:13.23. She also won the mile run after clocking 5:05.91 in that event.
“Ninfa did an outstanding job for us,” said UAPB head coach Christopher McCoy. “The two records she broke were held by former UAPB athletes. She’ll also do well during the outdoor season.”