NATCHITOCHES – After making moves in the national rankings in their events following outstanding winning marks last Saturday, Northwestern State's Kenyah McDaniel and Albert Fournette of Louisiana-Lafayette have been chosen as Outstanding Performers for the 2014 Leon Johnson NSU Invitational track and field meet.
 
Fournette, a graduate student from New Orleans, threw 63-4 ¾ to win the men's shot put, posting a mark that bettered his previous best by almost five inches and improved his NCAA qualifying stock as he firmed up a grip on the No. 14 ranking nationally.
 
McDaniel, a sophomore from Tomball, Texas, bettered her previous best by 14 inches while soaring 20-5 ¼ in the women's long jump. She also posted a personal best with an 11.91 in the 100 meter dash, finishing second, and was third for NSU in the 200 at 24.63, near her personal record. McDaniel also ran the lead leg on the second-place 4x100 meter relay team (46.23).
 
The performance in the long jump boosted her atop the Southland Conference standings and vaulted her from off the charts to 21^st nationally. The top 48 in both the East and West regions advance to preliminary competition qualifying the top 24 for the national meet in June.
 
Coaches and administrators reviewed meet results to choose the male and female Outstanding Performer awards for the meet. The NSU Invitational dates back to at least the late 1970s and was renamed in 2011 to honor the since-retired legendary track and field coach at Northwestern, Leon Johnson, who served as an official for the high jump at Saturday's meet.
 
The Northwestern men's and women's teams are off this week as they prepare for final examinations, then the Southland Conference Outdoor Championships in Conway, Ark., on May 9-11.