EDWARDSVILLE, ILL. – Southern Illinois University Edwardsville head track and field coach Kareem Jackson announced the signing of two talented student-athletes, one male and one female, for the upcoming season.
On the men’s side, Braxton Klavins (Lake Zurich) comes to SIUE following an impressive summer where he won the 400-meter event at the 2010 USATF Regional held in Indianapolis, Ind., which qualified him for the Jr. Olympics National meet in Sacramento, Calif.
Klavins earned All-American honors by placing seventh at the national meet. Also an Illinois state qualifier in the 4×100 and 4×400 relay, Klavins placed eighth in the 4×100 at the state meet.
“We are excited to add Braxton to our men’s program,” said Jackson. “With only two years of track experience, we think the sky is the limit for Braxton. He will add speed and depth to the men’s sprints group, and I look forward to seeing him develop as a student-athlete in our program for years to come.”
Debonie Lofton (Detroit, Mich.) will add immediate depth to the Cougar women’s program in the mid-distance events. She competed at the 2010 USA Junior Outdoor Championships held at Drake University in June.
Lofton set a personal best time of 2:12.41 in the 800-meter run as a member of the Motor City Track Club at the event and later became a finalist at the AAU National Championships held in Virginia. At the Michigan State High School finals, Lofton placed sixth overall with a time of 2:15.00.
“Debonie comes to our program with a lot of experience,” added Jackson. “Her high school coach, Brandon Jiles, said that she is a tremendous athlete who works hard at getting better. Some good programs from across the country recruited her. Adding her to our team says that we are taking the right steps to continue to be successful.”
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