Bahamian collegiate athlete Dannielle Gibson received the Mid-Atlantic Field Athlete of the Year honor, on Tuesday, by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). Award winners were determined by a vote of USTFCCCA member coaches. It was the first time in her career that she received the prestigious award.

Gibson, a junior at Penn State, will represent her school in the women's triple jump competition at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon this weekend. She had a strong outdoor season for Penn State this year and hopes to put it all together on college track and field's biggest stage.

During the season, she set an all-time all-conditions school record in the women's triple jump with a leap of 13.63 meters (m) - 44' 8-3/4". That performance came during the 2016 NCAA East Preliminary Round.

At the Big Ten Championships, Gibson mustered up a second place finish in the triple jump. She also finished 10th in the long jump and also ran a leg for Penn State's women's 4x100m relay team at the Big Tens.

Also this season, Gibson captured individual wins in the triple jump competitions at the Jim Thorpe Invitational and the Pepsi Invitational. Both events were staged in Eugene, Oregon, USA - the same venue of the NCAAs this weekend.

In the women's long jump competition at the NCAA East Preliminary Round in Jacksonville, Florida, Gibson finished 16th with a best mark of 6.08m (19' 11-1/2"), which was just 0.02m off her season best mark of 6.10m (20' 0-1/4") done in Tempe, Arizona at the Pac 12/Big Ten Challenge in March.

Along with the all-time all-conditions school record, Gibson owns the No. 2 performance in triple jump indoors in Penn State history.

Last year, she qualified for the NCAA East Prelims in the both jumps, and finished 31st in the triple jump and 44th in the long jump. During the 2014 NCAA East Prelims, she ran the opening leg of the Penn State Nittany Lions women's 4x100m relay team that finished 14th in 44.96 seconds, just missing out on the NCAA Championships.

Randy Smith, Guardian Sports Reporter

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