Four Eagles punch ticket to nationals in six events
INDIANAPOLIS - A school-record four track and field athletes will represent Carson-Newman in six events at the NCAA National Championship Outdoor Track and Field Meet May 23-25 in Kingsville, Texas.
INDIANAPOLIS - A school-record four track and field athletes will represent Carson-Newman in six events at the NCAA National Championship Outdoor Track and Field Meet May 23-25 in Kingsville, Texas.
Sprinter Devon Moore and distance runner Luke Greer will represent Carson-Newman in a pair of events, while jumpers Jahvad McDermott and Kris Potts-Howard will compete in an event apiece.
"To have four athletes qualify is special," Carson-Newman head track coach David Needs said. "However, to have four in six events speaks to the quality of each athlete. Especially since all four were provisional qualifiers in at least two events. Having Devon qualify in sprints, Luke in distance, Jahvad and Kris in jumps speaks to our diversity as a program. With all four traveling to previous championships the expectation is to compete for a championship and not just be satisfied with their selection."
Moore will compete in the 100 and 200 meter dashes, Greer in the 5k and 10k, Potts-Howard in the long jump and McDermott in the triple. Carson-Newman has never sent four men to one NCAA national championship meet.
Potts-Howard will get things started for the Eagles Thursday, May 23 at 7:20 p.m. in the long jump. He is seeded 17tth in the event with a leap of 7.48 meters. Potts-Howard finished 13th at nationals as a sophomore in the event with a jump of 6.99 meters.
An hour later, Moore will run in the first round of the 100 meter dash. Moore is the top seed for the event after his school-record time of 10.12 seconds at the Tennessee Relays, the 12th fastest time in NCAA history.
Greer will finish out the day at 10:35 p.m. EDT with his 10k run. Moore and Greer will both be looking to repeat as All-Americans after the indoor campaign.
Day two will see Moore run again at 6:50 p.m. in the 200 meters after McDermott hits the triple jump pit at 5:45 p.m. McDermott is seeded 13th for his event with a 15.17 meter leap. Moore had the 12th fastest time in the country in the 200 this year, turning in a 20.87 second time.
Action wraps up Saturday with the finals of the 100 and 200, should Moore qualify, at 7:45 p.m. and 8:55 p.m. Greer will run the 5K at 9:30 p.m.
