JONESBORO, Ark. (5/15/07) ? Arkansas State track and field athletes have turned in 13 qualifying performances to the 2007 NCAA Mideast Regional Championships May 25 in Columbia, Mo. This number marks the most ever for the school's track and field program, erasing the previous record of 12 in 2004-05.
The 2007 qualifiers include Kristiina Alatalo (triple jump), Shawn Aronson (high jump and long jump), Brandon Banda (pole vault), Derek Bowman (javelin throw), Elizabeth Boyle (pole vault), Jason Brooks (400-meter dash), Amy Fleddermann (high jump), James Jenkins (high, triple, and long jump), Ronnie Maglaughlin (javelin), and Matt Vining (decathlon).
Although Kazmere Hill met the qualifying standard at the Missouri Relays, his 14.16 time in the 110-meter high hurdles was not accepted due to a strong wind reading.
“We knew going into the season that our teams were top heavy,” said ASU Assistant Coach Lon Badeaux. “By that, I mean we had some very good athletes in certain events and that showed in the conference meet. We had a lot of winners, but not many second or third or fourth places.”
Bowman, a junior who transferred to ASU from Southeastern Louisiana, is ASU's latest to meet the standard. He threw the javelin 206-11 and finished third in last weekend's Sun Belt Conference outdoor championships. That distance is the first time an ASU javelin thrower has eclipsed 200-feet since Bill Johnson hit the mark at 203-10 1/2 in 1982. In fact, only three people have ever thrown the javelin at least 200 feet in the program's history.
“We expected it from Derek,” said Badeaux. “But, he's been on and off because of an injured muscle. He's certainly capable of throwing even farther.”
In addition, James Jenkins is only the second person in school history to qualify in three different events. The senior from St. Louis, Mo., has met the requirement in the long jump, the triple jump, and the high jump. Candon Powell competed in the hammer throw, the shot put, and the discus in 2004-05. Jenkins won the triple and high jump at the Sun Belt meet and improved his high jump to 7-0 1/2.
Badeaux said all ASU qualifiers have a good shot of making the move to the national championship meet from the regionals.
Arkansas State is prominent in the latest NCAA regional rankings. Jenkins' high jump is third on the list while his triple jump of 51-7 1/4 is ranked fifth and his 24-3 long jump is 26th. Bowman's throw is ranked sixth, while Vining is ranked seventh in the decathlon with his 6,980-point performance at the Texas Relays.
Aronson's two events are ranked 15th in the high jump with 6-10 3/4 and his standard of 24-1 in the long jump is 30th. Brooks is ranked 10th in the 400-meters with his best of 46.71 and Hill is 16th in the hurdles with 14.16.
For the women, Maglaughlin's school record throw of 152-0 in the javelin is eighth, Boyle's vault of 12-11 1/2 is eighth, Alatalo's jump of 40-11 1/2 is 15th, and Fleddermann's high jump of 5-8 3/4 is 23rd.
Boyle, the favorite to win the Sun Belt women's pole vault championship, was unable to compete because of an appendectomy, and Fleddermann was unable to complete competition in the league's heptathlon because of a foot injury.
The regional competitors will take a few days off, then return to work early next week. Competition gets underway Friday, May 25, at 11 a.m. at Audrey J. Walton Stadium on the campus of the University of Missouri.
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