The defending NEC 400m hurdles champion is slowly rounding into form. Contesting her signature event at the Beach Invitational in Long Beach, CA, Hayes trimmed some time off her seasonal best and moved into second place on the Northeast Conference performance list. Hayes clocked in at 1:03.08 to finish in the top half of an ultra-competitive field. The time is only 0.04 second off the automatic qualifying standard for the ECAC Championships. Hayes set her PR at 1:00.63 while striking gold at last year’s NEC Outdoor Championships.