GREENSBORO, N.C. – A silver medal by Fridah Koech and four top-six finishes in throwing events propelled the Norfolk State women into a second-place standing after day two of the 2021 MEAC Outdoor Championships on Friday at Irwin Belk Track.

The Spartans have tallied 52 points through six completed events. Defending champion North Carolina A&T is in the lead with 54 points.

Koech was runner-up in the 3,000-meter steeplechase Friday, finishing in a time of 11 minutes, 41.88 seconds. Her silver medal came one day after she won the MEAC 10,000-meter title. Her teammate, Faith Jemutai, was fourth (12:13.29) in the steeplechase Friday.

The Spartans also got valuable points Friday from their throwers. Arieana Parker started the day off with a fourth-place showing in the hammer. Her top throw was 158 feet, 6 inches, a new personal record. Tiara Simms matched that by placing fourth in the javelin throw later in the day with a PR of her own, a mark of 101-2. Daiysa Burrell backed up her teammates by placing fifth in the javelin (92-9) and sixth in the hammer (PR, 155-0).

Elsewhere in the field, Indya Richards finished fifth in the long jump with a best leap of 17-7. Dahja Price leads the heptathlon through four events with 2,733 points.

Aside from the steeplechase, the other track events Friday consisted of preliminary heats. A total of six Spartans qualified for Saturday's finals based on their performances Friday: Kiara Grant in the 100 (11.34 seconds), Malika Pride in the 400 (55.18), Martha Bissah (2:09.62) and Kara Grant (2:14.74) in the 800, and both Richards (14.36) and Taejah Robertson (14.45) in the 100-meter hurdles.

Saturday's final day of competition begins at 9:30 a.m. with conclusion of the heptathlon. The running events will be broadcast live starting at noon on FloTrack.