Dage Minors was denied a place in the 800 metres final at the NCAA Division II Indoor Championships yesterday by three-tenths of a second as fellow Bermudian Shaquille Dill claimed the final spot at the Pittsburg State University.

Minors, a junior at Franklin Pierce University, placed third in the first heat in a time of 1min 51.04sec and when the final times were compiled from the three heats, Minors was denied the eighth spot in the final by Dill’s time of 1:51.01 in the third heat.

The top-two finishers from the three heats and the next two best times advanced to tonight’s final.

Dill, of St Augustine’s College, was eighth overall while Minors was ninth. The winning time was by Luis Romero, of TAMU-Commerce, who beat out Patrick Weaver, of Colorado Mines, and Minors to win heat one in 1:50.37.

Minors qualified for the 800 through his performance at the Boston University Last Chance Meet, where he turned in a time of 1:49.76, the fastest by a Northeast-10 Conference student-athlete this year to rank him seventh in the nation.

Dill represented Bermuda at last summer’s Pan Am Games, finishing seventh in his 800 heat in 1:52.25.