KEVIN JENISON

GoSycamores.com

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – It took six flights and a lot of logistics but the 23 members of the Indiana State track & field team along with coaches and support staff are on hand in Greensboro, N.C., for the 2013 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championship East Preliminary which begins Thursday and runs through Saturday.

Competition for the Sycamores begins at 10 a.m. (ET) Thursday when senior Brandon Pounds competes in the men's discus while junior Maurice Lyke goes in the men's long jump at 1:00 p.m. and senior Felisha Johnson in the women's discus at 3:30 p.m.

Action on the track will start at 4:30 p.m. with senior Stacia Weatherford competing in the first round of the women's 400 meter hurdles. Sophomores Jonathan Jackson and Arqeil Shaw will be joined by junior Max Tuttle in the first round of the men's 400 meter hurdles at 5 p.m. Freshman Katie Wise will run in the first round of the women's 100 meters at 6:30 p.m. and senior Leeann Michl will be in the first round of the women's 800 meters at 8:10 p.m. The top three from each heat and the next six fastest times will advance to the quarterfinals on Friday.

The evening's competition wraps up with freshman John Mascari running in the men's 10,000 meter semifinals at 9:40 p.m. The top 12 finishers advance to the NCAA Finals in Eugene, Ore.

Friday's competition opens with Johnson going in her second event, the women's hammer throw, at 10 a.m. (ET). Seniors Nicole Hope and Richelle Kimble join freshman Kimyanna Rudolph in the women's pole vault competition that starts at 5 p.m. while junior Chris Fields and freshman Derek Bunch go in the men's shot put which also starts at 5 p.m.

Track action for Indiana State begins at 5:30 p.m. when junior Greggmar Swift and Lyke compete in the first round of the men's 110 meter hurdles. The top three in each heat and the next six fastest times advance to the quarterfinals on Saturday. The quarterfinals in the women's 100 meters (6:30 p.m.), women's 800 meters (7:00 p.m.), women's 400 meter hurdles (7:30 p.m.), and the men's 400 meter hurdles (7:45 p.m.) will be run on Friday with the top 12 advancing to the NCAA Finals.

Wise will run in her second event at 8 p.m. Friday when she competes in the women's 200 meter preliminaries. The top three from each heat along with the next six fastest times advance to the quarterfinals on Saturday.

Indiana State's competition on Friday wraps up with senior Dustin Betz competing in the men's 3,000 meter steeplechase at 9:30 p.m. The top three from each heat plus the next three fastest times advance to the NCAA Finals.

Two more field events involving Sycamores begin the final day of competition on Saturday as Pounds and junior Justin Applegate go in the men's hammer throw at 10 a.m. Johnson returns for her third event at 5:30 p.m. when she competes in the women's hammer throw.

The final day on the track starts for at 6 p.m. Indiana State when sophomore Kaisha Martin, senior Macey Black, freshman Demetra Camble, and Wise compete for the Sycamores in the women's 4x100 meter relay. The top three from each heat along with the next three fastest times advance to the NCAA Finals.

The quarterfinals of the men's 110 meter hurdles will be run at 7:20 p.m. with the quarterfinals of the women's 200 meters at 7:35 p.m. The top 12 in each event advance to the NCAA Finals.

Indiana State Qualifiers - Men

Justin Applegate (Mooresville, Ind.) will compete in the men's hammer throw and is making his first trip to the NCAAs. The junior threw his collegiate best distance of 190'-4” (58.01m) in the event at the Billy Hayes Invitational. He was eighth at the MVC Outdoor Championships (185'-7”/56.56m).

Dustin Betz (Schnellville, Ind.) will be making his second trip to the NCAAs to compete in the 3,000 meter steeplechase. The senior ran his collegiate best (8:56.49) in placing third in the event at the Drake Relays and finished second at the MVC Championships (9:00.95). Betz finished 30th in the quarterfinals at the 2012 East Preliminary round.

Derek Bunch (Mahomet, Ill.) will compete in the men's shot put and is making his first trip to the NCAAs. The freshman posted his collegiate best distance of 56'-10¼” (17.32m) in the event at the Sea Ray Relays. He was eighth at the MVC Outdoor Championships (51'-1¼“/15.70m).

Chris Fields (Evansville, Ind.) made the field for the shot put and is making his first trip to the NCAAs after missing by one spot of competing at the 2012 East Preliminary. The junior posted a season best distance of 55'-7½” (16.95m) in the event at the Billy Hayes Invitational. He placed second at the MVC Outdoors (54'-4¾“/15.88m). Fields posted his collegiate best in 2012 (55'-7¾“/16.96m).

Jonathan Jackson (Chicago, Ill.) is making his second trip to the NCAAs in the 400 meter hurdles. The sophomore ran his collegiate best (51.78) in winning the 2013 MVC 400 meter hurdle title. Jackson ran in the 2011 East Preliminary and placed 41st in the first round.

Maurice Lyke (Country Club Hills, Ill.) will be making his second straight trip to the NCAAs and will compete in two events (110 meter hurdles and long jump). The junior ran his collegiate best in the 110 meter hurdles (13.83) at the Billy Hayes Invitational and finished second at the MVC Championships (13.90). He finished 28th in the first round of the 2012 East Preliminary.

Lyke will also compete in the long jump for the first time in the NCAAs after winning the 2013 MVC title with his collegiate best leap of 24'-5¾” (7.46m). The junior came close to qualifying in the triple jump after finishing second at the MVC Championships with his collegiate best leap of 48'-6¾“ (14.80m).

John Mascari (Terre Haute, Ind.) is making his first trip to the NCAAs in track & field. The freshman has competed in three 10,000 meter races this season and won all three including setting the school record (29:19.74) at the Drake Relays. He also won at the Sea Ray Relays and captured the 2013 MVC Championship. Mascari also competed in the NCAA Cross Country championship last Fall (60th in 30:25) after becoming Indiana State's first MVC Men's Champion.

Brandon Pounds (Indianapolis, Ind.) is competing in his third NCAAs and will compete in two events (discus and hammer throw). The senior threw a school record 215'-2” (65.58m) in the hammer throw at the Billy Hayes Invitational and will be making his second straight appearance in the event. He earned All-American recognition in 2012 with a fifth place finish at the NCAA Finals. Pounds was second at the MVC Championships (212'-10”/64.87m).

He will also compete in the discus for the second time in the NCAAs. Pounds posted a season best distance of 170'-7” (52.00m) at the Sea Ray Relays which is just short of his collegiate best (172'-4” (52.53m) which he posted in 2012. Pounds competed in the shot put (19th) and discus (36th) at the 2010 East Preliminary.

Arqeil Shaw (Indianapolis, Ind.) is making his first trip to the NCAAs and will compete in the 400 meter hurdles. The sophomore ran his collegiate best in the event (52.63) at the MVC Championships where he finished third.

Greggmar Swift (Bridgetown, Barbados) is making his third straight trip to the NCAAs in the 110 meter hurdles. He enters the post-season with the eighth fastest 110 meter hurdle time in the nation (13.52) which he ran in winning the 2013 MVC title. Swift was an All-American in 2012 after placing 10th in the event at the 2012 NCAA Finals. He missed a trip to the 2011 NCAA Finals by just a hundredth of a second with a 14th place finish in the East quarterfinals.

Max Tuttle (Bloomington, Ind.) is making his second trip to the NCAAs in the 400 meter hurdles. The junior ran his collegiate best in the event at the MVC Championships (51.82) where he finished second. Tuttle finished 33rd in the first round last year.

Indiana State Qualifiers - Women

Macey Black (Pleasant Hill, Ill.) will be competing in her first NCAAs as a member of the women's 4x100 meter relay team. The senior ran the second leg of the 4x100 meter relay team that ran a season best (45.16) to win the event at the MVC Championship. Black also ran her collegiate best in the 400 meters (54.54) in placing fifth at the MVC Championship with her time just five-hundredths of a second away from making the East Preliminary.

Demetra Camble (Milwaukee, Wis.) will be competing in her first NCAAs as a member of the women's 4x100 meter relay team. The freshman ran the third leg of the 4x100 meter relay team that ran a season best (45.16) to win the event at the MVC Championship. Camble established two collegiate bests at the MVC Championships in the 100 meters (11.68 in the preliminaries) and 200 meters (24.09 in the finals). She placed fourth in the 100 meters (11.71 in the finals) and seventh in the 200 meters. She missed a bid to the 100 meters by just three hundredths of a second.

Felisha Johnson (Indianapolis, Ind.) is making her fourth trip to the NCAAs and has qualified for three events for the third straight year (shot put, discus, and hammer throw). The senior set the Indiana State record in the shot put with a throw of 59'-7” (18.16m) at the Drake Relays and won the 2013 MVC title (57'-11”/17.65m). She will be competing in the event at the NCAAs for the fourth straight year and earned All-American status with a fifth place finish at the 2012 NCAA Finals. She placed 18th in the 2011 NCAA Finals.

The senior won the MVC Championship in the discus with a season best throw of 170'-7” (53.28m). She competed in the discus in the 2012 NCAAs and finished 22nd at the NCAA Finals. She established her collegiate best in the event (180'-6”/55.03m) at the 2012 NCAA East Preliminary.

She also qualified in the hammer throw with a season best distance of 195'-4” (59.53m) at the MVC Championship where she placed fourth. This is her third straight year of competing in the event at the NCAAs. She established her collegiate best in the event (200'-7”/61.14m) during the 2011 season.

Nicole Hope (Wilmington, Ohio) is making her second trip to the NCAAs in the pole vault after clearing her collegiate best height of 13'-9¼” (4.20m) at the Jesse Owens Track Classic this season. The height ranks 15th in the nation and fifth on the East performance list. The senior missed the 2012 season due to an injury but competed in the 2011 NCAAs where she tied for 24th at the East Preliminary. She recently won her second MVC title in the event (13'-2½“/4.03m). Hope competed at Ohio Northern University before transferring to Indiana State and qualified for the 2010 Division III Championships.

Richelle Kimble (Lowell, Mich.) will be making her fourth trip to the NCAAs in the women's pole vault. The senior cleared a season best 13'-0½” (3.97m) at the Billy Hayes Invitational. She just missed a spot in the 2012 NCAA Finals with a 14th place finish at the East Preliminary where she posted her collegiate best height (13'-3½“/4.05m). She was second at the 2013 MVC Championships (12'-10¾“/3.93m).

Kaisha Martin (Dowaigiac, Mich.) will be competing in her first NCAAs as a member of the women's 4x100 meter relay team. The sophomore ran the opening leg of the 4x100 meter relay team that ran a season best (45.16) to win the event at the MVC Championship. Martin established two collegiate bests at the MVC Championships in the 100 meters (11.81 in the preliminaries) and in the long jump (19'-4¾“/5.91m). She placed fourth in the long jump and was seventh in the 100 meter finals (12.02).

Leeann Michl (Newton, Ill.) will be making her second straight appearance in the women's 800 meters at the 2013 NCAAs. She ran her season best time (2:07.91) in the event at the Auburn Tiger Track Classic and dominated the event to win the title at the 2013 MVC Championships (2:08.73). Michl posted her collegiate best (2:06.28) in 2012. She came close to advancing to the NCAA Finals in 2012 with a 15th place finish in the quarterfinals of the East Preliminary.

Kimyanna Rudolph (Indianapolis, Ind.) is making her first appearance in the NCAAs after clearing her collegiate best in the pole vault of 13'-5¼” (4.10m) at the Auburn Tiger Track Classic. The freshman tied for fifth at the MVC Championships (12'-2¾“/3.73m).

Shalesa Smith (Milwaukee, Wis.) is making her first appearance in the NCAAs by competing in the women's triple jump. She soared to her collegiate best jump of 41'-2½” (12.56m) at the Drake Relays and finished fifth at the MVC Championships (40'-9½“/12.43m).

Carmelia Stewart (Apopka, Fla.) will be on hand for her first appearance in the NCAAs and will serve as an alternate for the women's 4x100 meter relay team. The sophomore had her collegiate best triple jump of 40'-11” (12.47m) at the MVC Championships where she placed fourth. The distance was just 1¼” short of the cut line for the NCAA East Preliminary. She also ran her collegiate best (13.84) in the 100 meter hurdles at the Billy Hayes Invitational which was just six hundredths of a second off a berth in the East Preliminary. Stewart had a collegiate best leap of 19'-8” (5.99m) in the long jump to finish third at the MVC Championship.

Stacia Weatherford (Indianapolis, Ind.) will be making her second trip to the NCAAs after qualifying in both hurdle events for the 2013 East Preliminary. The senior ran her collegiate best (57.62) to win the 400 meter hurdle title at the 2013 MVC Championship. She competed in the event at the 2012 NCAAs and finished 19th at the NCAA Finals. She also qualified for the 100 meters hurdles after setting the school record (13.55) in finishing second at the MVC Championships. She will be bypass that event to concentrate on the 400 meter hurdles. Weatherford also competed in the 2010 East Preliminary as part of the 4x400 meter relay which finished 19th in the quarterfinals.

Katie Wise (Morgantown, Ind.) will be making her first trip to the NCAAs and will compete in three events (100 meters, 200 meters, and 4x100 meter relay). She won the 100 meters at the 2013 MVC Championship with her collegiate best time (11.41). Wise also ran her collegiate best time (23.92) in the 200 meters at the MVC Championships where she finished fifth overall and anchored the 4x100 meter relay team that ran a season best (45.16) to win the event at the MVC Championship.

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