JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn.—Representatives from the Carson-Newman track and field team will have one final chance to solidify their cases for the 2017 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships as seven Eagles are set to compete in the North Carolina A&T Last Chance Meet Sunday afternoon in Greensboro, N.C.
"Sunday at the North Carolina A&T meet will be a great opportunity for some of our athletes to secure a spot in nationals. This speaks well to their dedication to go on a Sunday and take one final opportunity to improve their place in the national rankings," coach David Needs said prior to Saturday's departure. "This is also a testament to their character that they are willing to compete to the very end."
To qualify for the outdoor championships, each athlete must be ranked in the top-16 in their respected events to receive an automatic bit. Additional circumstances call for athletes to make the cut and sometimes up to 20 competitors per event make the trip to the postseason play.
Coming into the weekend, C-N has an athlete who is sitting in good position just weeks away from the outdoor games. High jumper Tanner Stepp (Jefferson City, Tenn.) is tied for fourth in the nation with a season-best mark of 2.13 meters at the South Atlantic Conference Championships back on April 14. The junior seeks his sixth-consecutive trip to the national stage and is eyeing his fifth All-American honor following another stellar season.
Kristofer Potts-Howard (Tullahoma, Tenn.) will be competing in both the men's triple and long jumps Sunday afternoon and will need to do a little work in both to secure a trip to Bradenton, Fla. In the long jump, the sophomore currently resides at 19th in the nation with a 7.44 meter mark at the Tennessee Rust Buster on March 25.
The Tullahoma, Tenn. native also recorded a career-best leap of 14.57 meters on the year, but is on the outside looking in as of now in the event as Potts-Howard is ranked 44th coming into the weekend. Still, the sophomore is riding momentum as the last time the jumper competed, he racked up two top-10 finishes at the historic 123rd running of the Penn Relays two weeks ago.
Another Eagle who will be in competition in the men's long jump is T.J. Davis (Chattanooga, Tenn.) as the senior is coming off his third SAC championship in the event to cap off a four-year career. Davis has been on the brink of nationals every season attended at C-N so far, and hopes a strong showing Sunday afternoon will propel his 7.26 meter-best mark on the year into national consideration.
Caleb Agee will conclude an impressive freshman campaign Sunday afternoon while competing in the men's 400 meter hurdles. Agee took home the SAC gold in the event with a time of 55.26 seconds and is currently ranked fourth in the region coming into the weekend.
Carson-Newman also sports three women in competition as Tiana Mills (Chattanooga, Tenn.), Shelby Reynolds and Tori Gaul (Salisbury, N.C.) are set to improve their stocks as well in the year's final meet.
Mills, who made the most of last year's North Carolina A7T Last Chance Meet, hopes to jump her way into nationals for the second-consecutive year. A year ago, Mills leaped 12.13 meters, breaking her own school record in the triple jump, and climbed all the way to No. 17 in the national to secure the final spot in the 2016 games.
This season, Mills looks to duplicate results as the SAC long jumping champion, and second-place finisher in the triple jump, has recorded season-bests of 5.81 meters in the long and 11.71 meters in the triple jump.
Gaul, who is coming off of an injury-plagued season, hopes to continue a strong showing at the SAC Championships into the weekend ahead. The women's pole vaulter recorded a second-place finish of 3.61 meters in her first bar clearance of the year. Gaul carried over the good fortunes into the awards ceremony where the junior was the conference inaugural Elite 18 Award winner bestowed upon a student-athlete with the highest GPA in their respected sport.
A complete recap following Sunday's events can be found right here on cneagles.com while live updates throughout the day of competition can be found on Twitter by following the club's account at @CN_Track.
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