May 25, 2011
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The Purdue men's and women's track and field teams head south this week for the 2011 NCAA Outdoor Championship East Preliminary Rounds, which will be hosted by Big Ten archrival Indiana University at Robert C. Haugh Track & Field Complex on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The Boilermakers have 24 athletes heading to Bloomington, comprised of 13 men's individuals, seven women's individuals and a women's relay team.
The top-48 declared individuals and the top-24 relays in the East and West Regions have qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championship Preliminary Rounds, all looking to advance to the NCAA Outdoor Championship Finals, set for June 8-11, in Des Moines, Iowa. The top-12 finishers in every event advance to the national meet, where they'll battle for All-America honors and NCAA gold. In the high jump and pole vault, athletes will compete until there are 12 or fewer athletes left at a given height, and then they will break ties as needed to award a top-12.
Eleven of the Boilermakers' 24 entries will compete on Thursday, including seniors Stacey Wannemacher and Bill Hardcastle and sophomore Geoff Davis, who are seeking repeat trips to the national outdoor meet. Wannemacher is a three-time NCAA Outdoor Championship qualifier in the women's shot put, Hardcastle is a two-time national qualifier in the men's shot put and Davis aims for his second straight NCAA outdoor bid in the men's high jump. In addition, senior Shane Crawford looks for his first career trip to the NCAA Outdoor Championships, owning the No. 10 time in the East in the men's 100-meter dash.
Wannemacher and fellow senior Emily Breslin take a shot at qualification on Friday as Wannemacher competes in the hammer throw and looks to become the Purdue women's first NCAA double qualifier since 2007, while Breslin takes aim at a second consecutive NCAA berth in the high jump. The Boilermakers also field a quartet of men's pole vaulters on Friday, led by senior Chris Thoman's career-best mark of 5.25 meters (17-02.75).
The Boilermakers will wrap up competition on Saturday as Hardcastle and junior Terri Anderson lead the charge in the men's and women's discus. Hardcastle looks to become the Purdue men's first double qualifier since 2005, while Anderson seeks her first bid to nationals. The women's 4x400-meter relay is the Boilermakers' first relay qualifier in the short history of the preliminary round format as seniors NaTasha Blair and Janan Graham paired with freshmen Ebony Woodard and Taylor Morrison for a qualifying time of 3:39.79.
For more information on the NCAA Outdoor Championship East Preliminary Rounds, visit Indiana's Championship home page at: http://iuhoosiers.cstv.com/sports/m-track/spec-rel/ncaa-track-11.html. Live updates of the Boilermakers' competition will be available throughout the event at the Boilermakers' Facebook and Twitter pages. The Hoosiers will also provide a live webstream of the track events and event-by-event results via IUHoosiers.com.
NCAA Outdoor Championship East Preliminary Rounds Schedule
Live Stream
Thursday, May 26, 2011 3:30 p.m. ET
Friday, May 27, 2011 4:30 p.m. ET
Saturday, May 28, 2011 6:00 p.m. ET
Purdue Schedule of Events
Thursday, May 26
11 a.m. - Women's Hammer Throw: Stacey Wannemacher, Dani Bunch
1 p.m. - Women's Long Jump: Leah Eber
1 p.m. - Men's Shot Put: Bill Hardcastle, Jakob Engel
1 p.m. - Men's High Jump: Geoff Davis
6 p.m. - Men's 100-Meter Dash First Round: Shane Crawford
6 p.m. - Men's Long Jump: Chris Kirtz, Seth Virgil
6 p.m. - Women's Pole Vault: Elizabeth Stover
8 p.m. - Men's 800-Meter Run First Round: Jacob Palmer
Friday, May 27
1 p.m. - Women's Shot Put: Stacey Wannemacher, Dani Bunch, Liberty Slinden
1 p.m. - Women's High Jump: Emily Breslin
5 p.m. - Men's 110-Meter Hurdles: Josh Hembrough, Brandon Winters
6 p.m. - Men's Pole Vault: Chris Thoman, Zack Saunders, Kyle Campbell, Mitch Erickson
6:15 p.m. - Men's 100-Meter Dash Quarterfinal: Shane Crawford
6:45 p.m. - Men's 800-Meter Run Quarterfinal: Jacob Palmer
Saturday, May 28
11 a.m. - Women's Discus: Terri Anderson
5 p.m. - Men's Discus: Bill Hardcastle
7:20 p.m. - Men's 110-Meter Hurdles: Josh Hembrough, Brandon Winters
9:25 p.m. - Women's 4x400-Meter Relay Quarterfinal: Ebony Woodard, NaTasha Blair, Taylor Morrison, Janan Graham