VIDEO: David Needs Interview

BIRMINGHAM, Ala.— For the second year in-a-row, Carson-Newman sprinter Kevin Snead (Richmond, Va.) nets All-American honors in the men's 60 meter dash following an 11^th-place time of 6.81 seconds in the event to begin day one of the 2017 NCAA Division II Track & Field Championships for the Eagles.  

Snead was the first Eagle competitor to compete in the indoor Championships, which opened competition Thursday morning a part of the Division II Winter Festival in the Birmingham CrossPlex. Tanner Stepp (Jefferson City, Tenn.) will compete Friday afternoon in the men's high jump.

"You always hope for better, and with Kevin, the expectation is to always be better," coach David Needs said following the day of action. "But I can never complain about his heart, his effort and his want to. In the 60 meter dash, there is not a lot of room for error. With a quick field, if you don't start fast, it can catch up to you. It did that today."

Following the short sprint, the now four-time All-American by the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association finished 11^th out of a total of 16 sprinters who took part in the event. Snead ran in the second heat of the competition and placed sixth overall in the round. Though the speedster nets All-American honors once again, Snead narrowly missed out on making the cut for the finals round of the event that is set to take place Saturday afternoon.

With the new hardware, Snead has now collected at least one All-American honor in each postseason trip as the Richmond, Va. native also received the honor a year ago at the winter games following a 10^th-place finish of 6.81 seconds as well. At the outdoor championships to conclude the 2016 season, Snead finished third in the men's 200 meter dash and fifth in the 100 meter dash—both good enough for first team All-American honors.

For the time being, Snead has now tied teammate Tanner Stepp as the most decorated track and field athlete in program history with four postseason honors. The high jumper will be able to change that fate Friday afternoon, however, as Stepp looks to bring home his fifth All-American honor, as well as his first national championship.

"Kevin is a worker. He is dedicated and pays attention to what he puts into is body," Needs said. "He is the most disciplined eater I have ever seen. To his credit, he has high expectations. He sets his goals high and lives for them. I know he is disappointed now, but one day he will look back and be happy that he was a five-time All-American."

Coming into competition, Snead was ranked fifth in the nation with a 6.75 second season-best time that came at the Clemson Tiger Paw Invitational on Feb 15. During the preliminary round of that race, Snead beat Shorter's Lester Miller, who finished sixth with a qualifying time of 6.78 seconds Thursday afternoon.  

Continue following along all weekend long with the live web stream here, and also with the live stats here. Fans are also encouraged to follow the athletes all throughout competition on Twitter at @CN_Track while also checking into cneagles.com at the conclusion of each day for a full recap.

-CN-