Eagles set to end season at NCAA Division-II Outdoor Championships
ALLENDALE, Mich. - The no. 19 Carson-Newman men's track & field team end their 2022 outdoor campaign at the 2022 NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships at Grand Valley State University.
VIDEO: Kieran Showler-Davis Interview
VIDEO: Trayzel Jureidini-Wyche Interview
VIDEO: Joseph Oreva Interview
ALLENDALE, Mich. - The no. 19 Carson-Newman men's track & field team end their 2022 outdoor campaign at the 2022 NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships at Grand Valley State University.
The three day event begins on Thursday, May 26 and ends on Saturday, May 28. A total of 98 men's teams will compete at the event.
Carson-Newman will be represented by six total men's athletes at the national championships this weekend.
The men's 4x100 meter relay of Siphosethu Boya, Makanakaishe Charamba, PJ Lotharp and Devon Moore enter the NCAA Outdoor National Championships as the number four seed with a school record time of 39.93 seconds. The quartet has won the event championship at every single race they have competed in.
The group broke the original school record set in 1976 of 40.70 seconds at the Electric City Invitational with a time of 40.59 seconds. After breaking the record one week later at the Outdoor Music City Challenge with a time of 40.44 seconds, the convocation became just the fifth Division-II 4x100 meter relay group to set a time under 40 seconds with a SAC Championship mark of 39.93 seconds.
With a top-eight finish, Moore would become an eleven-time All-American, breaking a tie with Carson-Newman women's swimmer Kailee Morgan for most All-American honors in Carson-Newman history. The duo have both earned ten All-American honors in their respective sports during their careers.
"This is a very talented group," says sprints coach Kieran Showler-Davis. "They come from all over the world and have really worked well together. In the past we have had success at nationals with the sprinters earning All-American honors and we decided to put those guys together. They all push each other and the chemistry is phenomenal."
Individually, Boya holds a qualifying time in the 100-meter run. His time of 10.30 seconds set at the Outdoor Music City Challenge is tied with Moore for the school record and is tied for the 12th-fastest time in Division-II. Boya has finished no lower than fifth in the event this season, including taking home the silver medal at the 2022 SAC Outdoor Championships.
"We had Sipho run a few 60-meter races in indoor and saw he had some good speed," says Showler-Davis. "We just wanted him to get his 200-meter time down to help with the 400. But he's a very confident guy and asked me if he could run a few 100-meter races this season and we gave him a go and he took his chance and nailed it."
The SAC Freshman of the Year will compete in his first NCAA Outdoor Championship as Makanakaishe Charamba gets his shot in the 100 and 200 meter runs. The Harare, Zimbabwe native finished with the 15th fastest time in Division-II in the 100-meter run, recording a time of 10.35 seconds en route to a gold medal at the SAC Outdoor Championships. In the 200-meter run, Charamba's time of 20.84 seconds set at the Lee Flames Invitational is the ninth-fastest in Division-II. Charamba has been on a tear this season for the Eagles, recording five individual race victories and six combined championships in the two races.
"Maka is a guy who absolutely loves track," says Showler-Davis. "He is actually very raw when you mention the techniques and dynamics of the sport so he has nowhere to go but up. After being nicked up at the end of indoor, he's come on strong in outdoor and I'm not only excited for him this season but for his future here."
The prelims of the 4x100 meter relay will begin at 4:50 PM on Thursday, May 26. If the Eagles make the finals, the convocation will compete on Saturday, May 28 at 2:00 PM. Boya and Charamba will compete in the prelims of the 100-meter run on May 26 at 6:10 PM while the prelims of the 200-meter run begin on Friday, May 27 at 5:30 PM. The finals of both events will be held on May 28 with the 100-meter kicking off at 3:25 PM and the 200-meter run starting at 4:40 PM.
For the first time in his career, Joseph Oreva is headed to Allendale to compete for the long jump national championship. The sophomore holds the second farthest mark in all of Division-II, recording a mark of 7.77 meters at the LSU Joe May Invitational. Oreva finished third at the event, finishing above several Division-I athletes. The Port Harcourt, Nigeria native also won the SAC Championship in the event for the second straight season with a mark of 7.50 meters.
If Oreva finishes inside the top-eight, he would earn his first outdoor All-American honor. He is a two-time All-American in the long jump after finishing fourth and sixth overall at the last two indoor championship events.
"It's been tough to get back up and healthy at times this season," says Oreva. "That's been the goal this season and when I've been healthy there is no limit to my potential. This is this best I've felt over the past few seasons and I am positive going into the nationals this weekend."
Oreva begins his hunt for a championship on May 26 at 2:30 PM.
Trayzel Jureidini-Wyche makes his first career trip to the NCAA Outdoor Championships, competing as the eleven seed in the discus. The senior's toss of 53.81 meters at the Montreat Invitational broke his own school record and was at one point the third best throw in the country. Jureidini-Wyche has recorded 14 straight top-10 finishes in the event, including a gold medal at the 2022 SAC Outdoor Championships.
"It means every thing to make the championships this season after being snubbed by one spot last year," says Jureidni-Wyche. "We haven't had great weather this season but you can't control that. I've had to handle adversity and other forces in football and that's the same for throwing. While of course the goal is to win a national championship, I'm just ready to go out and compete and do my best."
Jureidini-Wyche and the rest of the field compete at 2:00 PM on May 27.
The NCAA Outdoor Championships begin on Thursday, May 26 in Allendale, Mich. Fans can follow along with live results all weekend here. A live video stream for all three days will be provided on ncaa.com for free. Links to the live video stream are also available at cneagles.com.
