UNCW sprinter John Carr etched his name into the Seahawk record books at the Shamrock Invitational in Myrtle Beach, S.C. when he darted to a new school-best 10.54 seconds in the 100 meter sprint. Carr, a senior from Greenevers, N.C., shaved 0.02 seconds off the previous mark, which had been held by Xzavier Chisholm since 2001. The new record also puts Carr under the qualifying time of 10.55 seconds required for the NCAA Regional meet at the end of May. The achievement came special to Carr as he spent last season sidelined by pinched nerves in his back. “It means a lot to me. Last year I battled injuries and had to sit out indoor season,” he said. “There were times when I couldn’t make it out of bed and tie my shoes.”

At the completion of the race, the electronic timeboard showed Carr’s time as 10.67 seconds leading him to believe he had missed out on the record; however, after a few seconds, a correction flashed with his official time.

“I just started smiling and thanking God,” he said. “It’s a great feeling to know I’m the fastest kid to come through the school.”

Carr’s record came as a bit of a surprise as the meet was run on a soft track, traditionally a slower track for sprinters. “There were some guys complaining about the soft track, but I just thought I was going to run it the best I can,” he said.

Despite the slower track, Carr believed the record was in his sights as he made his way through the preliminary heats.

“I felt good the whole day and I knew the mark. When my teammate, Justin Prevette, and I were warming up, I said to him, ‘let’s get this record,’ kind of jokingly,” he said.

After a strong start out of the blocks, Carr was eventually caught and passed by South Carolina’s Jonathan Hancock, who posted a winning time of 10.48 seconds.

Although Carr admitted finishing second took a little gloss off the record, he remained excited about hanging with Hancock, a top sprinter, and qualifying for the NCAA Regionals.

“It was great to have him there pushing me and it shows that I can run with some of the best competition in the nation,” he said.

Carr and the rest of the Seahawk track and field team are currently preparing for the upcoming CAA Championships where they will go for their third-straight title.

“It would mean the world to me [to win] because it’s my last one and I would leave winning the last three conference championships,” Carr said.