FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- The competition is underway for the LSU track and field teams at the 2008 Tyson Invitational and three LSU standouts recorded NCAA provisional qualifying marks to highlight the early action at the Randal Tyson Track Center on Friday. Sophomore All-American Jamaal James has put himself in a position to compete at the NCAA Indoor Championships after crossing the finish line in fourth in the Olympic development section of the men’s 800 meters with his first provisional time of the season at 1 minute, 49.01 seconds. James cut more than two seconds off of his time of 1:51.30 recorded in his season debut at the New Balance Collegiate Invitational in New York last weekend. Also recording her first NCAA provisional qualifying time of the season on Friday afternoon was freshman Brittany Hall, who finished runner-up to teammate Kayann Thompson in the Olympic development section of the women’s 800 with a new indoor personal best time of 2:08.06. Hall’s effort moves her into the No. 10 spot on the school’s all-time indoor performance list in the event. Thompson finished the race with a provisional qualifying time of her own at 2:07.57, but her time of 2:07.52 recorded at the New Balance Collegiate Invitational still stands as her seasonal best. “I was really pleased to see Jamaal run the way he did and post the kind of time that I think will get him into the NCAA meet,” said LSU head coach Dennis Shaver. “He looked smooth out there and ran rally well today. He’s a guy we’re counting on to not only get into the NCAA meet, but also score at the meet to put us in a position to win. “I also thought it was big for Brittany Hall to come in here as a freshman and get a provisional time with a big PR. She didn’t run her best last week, and the improvement she showed from last week to this week speaks volumes of her potential.” Junior Andrea Linton led the Lady Tigers’ effort in the field events on Friday afternoon as she improved her already established NCAA provisional qualifying mark in the long jump with a leap of 20 feet, 5 ¼ inches to take seventh in the championship section. Linton, who also boasts a strong provisional qualifying jump of 43-4 ¼ in the triple jump, has shown tremendous consistency throughout the 2008 season as she has hit a provisional qualifying jump all six times she stepped onto the runway between the two events. “Consistency is the name of the game in this sport, and Andrea has been getting better and better with each meet,” Shaver said. “She’s not only been consistent, but it seems like she’s been improving each time she steps on the runway. She has the opportunity to do some great things for us this season, and I don’t even think the long jump is her best event.” In addition to personal best performances registered by Hall and Linton, four of LSU’s distance runners recorded new indoor personal records in their respective events during Friday’s action. Senior Kate Accardo kicked things off for the top-ranked Lady Tigers by shattering her indoor PR in the 5,000 meters during the morning session. Accardo cut more than one minute off of her previous top time of 18:44.67 as she covered the 25 laps in 17:35.60 to become the fourth-fastest woman to ever compete in the event at LSU. Junior Megan Broussard shaved more than 23 seconds off of her PR in the same race as she crossed the finish line in 18:11.13 to move into the No. 6 spot on LSU’s all-time performance list. Not to be outdone by his female counterparts at the same distance was junior Joseph Simuchimba, who was the third-place finisher in the men’s 5,000 meters with the sixth-fastest time in school history at 14:24.92. Simuchimba opened the competition with a previous PR of 14:36.35. In addition, senior Michael Hendry won the event title in the championship section of the men’s mile after crossing the finish line with the eighth-fastest time in school history by an LSU athlete at 4:05.03. Hendry’s previous PR of 4:06.31 was set nearly two years ago. “Like our middle distance guys, today was a big day for our distance runners,” Shaver said. “I thought it was an awesome performance by Kate Accardo to improve her PR by more than a minute. She’s just a great person who has been consistent in her training and is always working hard. I really liked what I saw from her out there today.” Friday’s action also saw sophomore Samantha Henry and freshman Kenyanna Wilson advance to the two-section final of the 60-meter dash. Henry crossed the finish line in 7.25 to take third in the championship final, while Wilson placed sixth in the consolation final with a time of 7.53. A pair of Lady Tiger hurdlers advanced to Saturday’s final in the 60-meter hurdles on the first day of the competition as junior Nickiesha Wilson (8.25) qualified fifth and senior Jessica Ohanaja (8.27) qualified sixth in the prelims. Senior Ryan Fontenot (7.82) also advanced to Saturday’s final as he was the fourth-place finisher in the prelims of the men’s 60-meter hurdles. The action continues Friday night as Kelly Baptiste (60 meters), Trindon Holliday (60 meters), Elkana Kosgei (800 meters), John Kosgei (mile) and both of LSU’s 4x400-meter relay teams have been invited to compete in the professional portion of the meet. Be sure to log on to www.LSUsports.net for full results from tonight’s action.