June 8, 2009
FAYETTEVILLE -
LIVE TV Coverage:
Wednesday, June 10, Thursday, June 11 and Friday, June 12:
10:30 a.m. CT live web stream from NCAA Championships
Friday, June 12: 6 p.m. CT, CBS College Sports
Saturday, June 13: Noon CT, CBS Sports
LIVE Web Updates Texas A&M: Aggie T&F
A crew of 32 athletes will represent Texas A&M during the NCAA Track & Field Championships, hosted by the University of Arkansas from June 10-13 at John McDonnell Field.
The Aggies, now No. 1 in the men's and women's USTFCCCA rankings heading into the national meet, are predicted to win the women's NCAA title while the men are tabbed for second behind Oregon in the latest formchart produced by Track & Field News.
A&M recently was No. 2 in both the men's and women's rankings following the regional weekend, but each claimed No. 1 status this week when the USTFCCA rankings were updated on Monday. Oregon is No. 2 in both rankings.
"Both groups can be competitive this weekend," Texas A&M head coach Pat Henry said. "I'm extremely pleased with our teams. If we do the things we are capable of doing, or maybe do just a little bit better and with a little bit of luck, which is always involved, then we can have a really good weekend.
"We have a lot of opportunities with 32 people involved in the meet, so I think we are in good shape."
During the indoor season the A&M women finished as runner-up to Tennessee (42-37) for the NCAA Championship they hosted in College Station. The Aggie men placed ninth, creating A&M's best indoor combined finish since Coach Henry and his staff have been with the program over the past five seasons.
Last season at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, the Texas A&M women placed third with the Aggie men finishing fifth.
Of the squad of 32 Aggies, the A&M women have 17 athletes entered with two alternates for the relays while the men have 12 athletes with one relay alternate. An addition to the women's NCAA roster came over the weekend when Anteneshia Lindsey was an at-large selection in the discus.
Amid the T&FN formchart, two athletes and both sprint relays are favored to win their respective events. Porscha Lucas is favored in the 200, while Jessica Beard has the favorites role in the 400 over NCAA Indoor champion Francena McCorory of Hampton.
Lucas, runner-up to teammate Simone Facey (22.63 to 22.67) in the 2008 NCAA 200 final, also placed second during the NCAA Indoor 200 in March. She enters the national meet with 12 All-American honors, a school record at Texas A&M among men and women in the program's history.
Beard also claimed silver in the 400 during the NCAA Indoor and she is the top returning finalist from last year's NCAA Outdoor meet when she placed fourth behind a trio of seniors.
In addition both Aggie 4 x 100 relays are favored to claim titles this week. The men's 4 x 100, runner-up at the 2008 NCAA meet, gained a favorites role when they won the Penn Relays title in late April. During that meet the Aggies became the first program to sweep victories in the men's and women's 4 x 100 and 4 x 200 relays.
Running on the men's sprint relay are Chris Dykes and Justin Oliver. Members of the women's sprint relay include Khrystal Carter, Lucas, Elizabeth Adeoti and Allison George as alternates.
The Aggie women enter the meet as two-time defending champions in the 4 x 100 relay. They have led the collegiate list this season with 42.91 they posted in early April at the Texas Relays and recently lowered the collegiate leading mark to 42.80 seconds with a victory at the Midwest Region.
"There is a heart there about being part of the relays we have at Texas A&M," Henry noted. "I think each of our relay teams are very intent, it's about four people getting it done on that day. There is some intensity within our groups to be successful on this level."
For the second straight year Texas A&M has advanced all four relays to the national meet. Other schools with a set of four relays in the 2009 NCAA meet include LSU, South Carolina, Arizona State and USC.
In addition to the A&M women winning two NCAA championships in the 4 x 100, the men's 4 x 400 has earned silver medals the past two years and the men's 4 x 100 was runner-up last season as well.
There are a total of eight A&M athletes competing in jumping events during the NCAA Championships. A crew of four - Zuheir Sharif and Yasmine Regis, Ashika Charan, Angela Thomas - are contesting the women's triple jump.
Three of those jumpers - Reid, Stewart and Charan - will also be involved in the long jump, with qualifying starting on Wednesday.
Regis, with five Big 12 triple jump championships, leads the women's jump crew. On the men's side Reid claimed two Big 12 long jump titles as freshman in 2008 along with a pair of conference silver medals this outdoor season in the long and triple jump.
Reid earned a bronze medal in the long jump at the 2008 NCAA Outdoor meet while Regis claimed bronze in the triple jump at the 2006 NCAA Outdoor and was fourth during the 2009 NCAA Indoor. Sharif earned a bronze medal in the triple jump during this season's NCAA Indoor meet.
Competing first for the Aggies at the NCAA meet is Trinity Otto in the decathlon, which starts at 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday with the 100 meters.
In two competitions this season Otto has set a personal best score each time. Leading the Texas Relays after the first day, Otto set a PR of 7355 for fourth place. During the Big 12 Championships, Otto improved his score by 300 points, scoring 7655 for a bronze medal finish.
Other qualifying rounds for A&M on the first day of the four-day NCAA Championships will include the 4 x 100 relay, women's javelin, and 400 meters. Sprinters will have two rounds of the 100 meters on Wednesday.
NCAA Championships Day One - Wednesday, June 10
11:30 a.m. M Decathlon - Trinity Otto
4:00 p.m. M qual Long Jump - Julian Reid, Tyron Stewart
5:00 p.m. W semi 4 x 100 relay
5:15 p.m. M semi 4 x 100 relay
5:30 p.m. W qual Javelin - Laura Asimakis, Emalie Humphreys
6:00 p.m. W qual 100 meters - Porscha Lucas, Gabby Mayo
6:15 p.m. M qual 100 meters - Gerald Phiri
7:00 p.m. W qual 400 meters - Jessica Beard
7:15 p.m. M qual 400 meters - Justin Oliver, Byran Miller
7:30 p.m. W qual Long Jump - Ashika Charan
7:30 p.m. W semi 100 meters - Lucas, Mayo
7:40 p.m. M semi 100 meters - Phiri
Day Two - Thursday, June 11
10:30 a.m. W qual Discus - Anteneshia Lindsey
2:30 p.m. M Decathlon - Otto
4:45 p.m. W FINAL Long Jump - Charan
4:45 p.m. M FINAL Long Jump - Reid, Stewart
5:30 p.m. W qual 100 Hurdles - Gabby Mayo, Vashti Thomas
5:50 p.m. M qual 110 Hurdles - De'Lon Isom
6:10 p.m. W qual 200 meters - Porscha Lucas, Dominique Duncan
6:25 p.m. M qual 200 meters - Chris Dykes, Gerald Phiri
7:35 p.m. W semi 200 meters - Lucas, Duncan
7:45 p.m. M semi 200 meters - Dykes, Phiri
8:25 p.m. W semi 4 x 400 relay
8:55 p.m. M semi 4 x 400 relay