Track & Field Ranked in Top 15 Going Into Nationals
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Heading into the biggest track and field meet of the year, the Mississippi State men’s and women’s teams both landed in the Top 15 of the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association rankings.
Entering the NCAA Championships, the men are ranked No. 10 in the country, while the women moved up four spots to No. 11.
MSU has 15 athletes going to compete for a national title in 15 different events.
“I think we’re in a very good spot going into nationals,” MSU coach Steve Dudley said. “We will continue practices as normal and work with our athletes through the week and get them ready for the championships.”
Erica Bougard will head to nationals to compete in three different events. After scoring 6,250 points at the SEC Championships in the heptathlon, Bougard was able to advance to the NCAA Championships. She will also compete in the high jump and the 100m hurdles.
Placing first overall in the 1500m run, Rhianwedd Price ran a personal-best 4:10.95 in the 1500m run to punch her ticket to Eugene, Ore. Finishing immediately behind Price was Marta Freitas, who also ran a personal best of 4:13.17 in the event to also go to Oregon.
The women’s 4x400m relay team broke a school record at the NCAA East Preliminaries after running a time of 3:32.13 to finish 12th overall and advance to nationals. The team was comprised of Bougard, Kimari Martin, Ocian Archer and Shayla Luckett.
Another school record broken over the weekend was Cornelia Griesche in the 3000m Steeplechase after running a time of 9:58.06 to qualify.
Making her final appearance in the NCAA East Preliminaries, senior Ebony Brinker advanced to the NCAA Championships after a school record leap of 41-11.75 in the triple jump.
On the men’s side, Brandon McBride, a two-time NCAA Champion in the 800m run, will look to defend his title next week in Eugene. McBride ran a time of 1:45.97 to place first overall and secure his spot in the Top 12.
Senior Marcus Jackson will be able to conclude his season at the national stage in the high jump. Jackson cleared 6-11.75 in the prelims, but his best clearance of the season was 7-05.75 at the Crimson Tide Invitational.
In the javelin, freshman Curtis Thompson makes his way to the NCAA Championships after a throw of 225-06 to place 10th in the preliminaries.
Alfred Larry will be making his first trip as a Bulldog to Oregon for the 400m dash. He placed ninth in Jacksonville, Fla., with a time of 45.92 to qualify.
Returning to the championships, Scottie Hearn goes into nationals after finishing third at the preliminaries in the 400m hurdles with a time of 49.94.
Also in Oregon for the Bulldogs will be Zachary Taylor competing in the decathlon after qualifiying at the SEC Championships.
The NCAA Championships will be held on June 10-14 at historic Hayward Field.
For more information on the MSU track and field teams, visit HailState.com and follow on Twitter (@HailStateTF).
Women’s Rankings:
1. Oregon
2. Arkansas
3. Kentucky
4. Texas A&M
5. Southern California
6. Florida
7. Georgia
8. LSU
9. Texas
10. Kansas State
11. Mississippi State
12. Texas Tech
13. Florida State
14. Michigan State
15. Clemson
16. Stanford
17. Kansas
18. Oklahoma
19. Virginia Tech
20. Baylor
21. Miami (Fla.)
22. Nebraska
23. Michigan
24. Wisconsin
25. Alabama
Men’s Rankings:
1. Florida
2. Oregon
3. Texas A&M
4. LSU
5. Arkansas
6. Southern California
7. Georgia
8. Viginia
9. Florida State
10. Mississippi State
11. Illinois
12. Texas
13. Texas Tech
14. Baylor
15. Penn State
16. Ohio State
17. Tennessee
18. BYU
19. Alabama
20. Oklahoma State
21. Clemson
22. Syracuse
23. Kansas State
24. Standford
25. UT Arlington