The Final Seasonal Alumni Report Is A Thiller

A third consecutive title in the 400-meter hurdles was claimed in a career best time of 53.51 seconds by Texas A&M junior Shamier Little as she became just the second female to accomplish the feat at the NCAA Championships on Saturday in front of 12,947 fans.

Little joined UCLA's Janeene Vickers (1989-91) in garnering three consecutive NCAA titles in the 400m hurdles. Little has accomplished her trio of titles as a freshman, sophomore and junior while Vickers started her string as a sophomore.

On a breezy day Little had a bit of company during the first half of the race. USC's Jaide Stepter, running in lane 7, pushed the pace while Arizona's Sage Watson, in lane 3, tried to maintain the stagger on Little, who occupied lane 4.

Through the final curve, though, it was Little in command of the race while a group of five hurdlers were nearly even at the eighth hurdle. As Little cruised to the finish line for her third NCAA victory, Kentucky's Kiah Seymore placed second in 54.67 with Watson third at 54.85. Harvard's Autumne Franklin (54.91) and LSU's Chanice Chase (54.94) rounded out the top five while Stepter (55.30) placed sixth.

This final produced the most hurdlers under 55 seconds with five, topping the previous best of four in 1996.

"I was really focused on my race," noted Little. "I don't feel the wind when I'm racing, so it didn't affect me. Going through the race I don't think about it, I'm focused on pushing and that usually eliminates the wind. It was kind of the same situation as last year's race with the wind. Today was no different.

"I knew I couldn't let too many people either get ahead of me or let them come up on me. Winning a third NCAA title and with that time is so exciting. It just builds my confidence up so much more."

Little is the current world and American leader for the 2016 season. Her time of 53.51 ranks Little second on the all-time collegiate list as she improved her Aggie school record of 53.74 from last season's NCAA final. Little only trails the collegiate record of 53.21 set in 2013 by Stanford's Kori Carter.

In claiming her 14^th consecutive win on the Hayward Field track, Little earned a sixth significant title of her collegiate career. In addition to the three NCAA championships, Little won the USATF title in 2015 along with the US Junior and World Juniors crowns in 2014.