Bulldogs Travel To Indiana For NCAA East Preliminaries
A new format that was implemented last year leaves little room for error on MSU's part. There are now two regions, East and West, and from each region, only the top 12 performers in each event advance to the nationals, slated for June 8-11 in Des Moines, Iowa.
The Bulldogs qualified 11 athletes for this week's meet, which begins Thursday and concludes on Saturday.
SEC All-Freshman James Harris leads the way for the Bulldogs as he is qualified in four events. The Lanett, Ala., native will compete in the 400-meter dash, 4x100m and 4x400m relays and the high jump.
Harris will be joined by fellow SEC All-Freshman Marcus Jackson in the high jump. Trevarus Christian (long jump), Jason Harper (triple jump) and Ed Wesela (shot put and discus) join Harris and Jackson to round out the Bulldogs qualified in field events.
Also qualified in multiple events are Garren Hendricks and Tavaris Tate. Hendricks will lace up for the 100m and 200m dashes, while Tate is scheduled to compete in the 400m dash and both the 4x100m and 4x400m relays.
Scheduled to join Tate and Harris on the relay squads are Justin Christian, O'Neal Wilder and Daundre Barnaby.
The Lady Bulldogs qualified 10 athletes, with four athletes qualifying for three events each.
Racquel Farquharson, Richesa McCaleb, Jody-Ann Muir and Taneisha Baker all qualified for three events. Farquharson, Muir and Baker are all scheduled to run the 4x100m and 4x400m relays, with McCaleb joining them on the 4x100m relay. In addition to the relays, each lady will compete in at least one other event. Racquel Farquharson will compete in the 100m hurdles, Muir and Baker will run the 400m dash and McCaleb will lace up in the 100m and 200m dashes.
Rounding out the Lady Bulldog track stars in Bloomington are Haley Greenwell in the 10,000m run, Talisha Lee in the 400m hurdles, Keisha Wallace who joins Racquel Farquharson in the 100m hurdles and Brittany Covington who will complete the 4x400m Maroon and White relay squad.
In Lady Bulldog field events, keep your eye on All-SEC Freshman Field Event Athlete of the Year Rochelle Farquharson as she competes in the long jump. She won the SEC Championship in the long jump a couple of weeks ago and looks to carry that momentum with her through the NCAAs. Joining her on the field will be Jessica Merriweather, who punched her ticket for Bloomington in the very first week of competition as she won the high jump at the Louisiana Classics.
Men's Participation
100m Dash
Garren Hendricks
200m Dash
Garren Hendricks
400m Dash
James Harris
Tavaris Tate
4x100m Relay
J. Christian, Cherry, Tate, Harris
4x400m Relay
Harris, Wilder, Barnaby, Tate
High Jump
James Harris
Marcus Jackson
Long Jump
Trevarus Christian
Shot Put
Ed Wesela
Discus
Ed Wesela
Women's Participation
100m Dash
Richesa McCaleb
200m Dash
Richesa McCaleb
400m Dash
Jody-Ann Muir
Taneisha Baker
10,000m Run
Haley Greenwell
100m Hurdles
Keisha Wallace
Racquel Farquharson
400m Hurdles
Talisha Lee
4x100m Relay
Ra. Farquharson, McCaleb, Baker, Muir
4x400m Relay
Baker, Muir, Covington, Ra. Farquharson
High Jump
Jessica Merriweather
Long Jump
Rochelle Farquharson