JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman Track & Field prepares for its first meet of the New Year this weekend when they head to East Tennessee State for 2019 ETSU Invitational at the David E. Walker Track at Gentry Field. The first event of the weekend is set to take place Friday, Jan. 11 at 8:45 a.m.
The short trek to Johnson City, Tenn. is a site that the Eagles are very familiar with as they have competed in their venue for several years.
"The familiarity helps because when you get there you're not wondering where you are supposed to be," Coach David Needs said. "You don't have to figure out where you are warming up. Some of our athletes have run there as far back as high school. It also helps with the procedure of the meet because you know what rhythm you need to have to be ready to go."
It's the first appearance in a meet for the program since it began the indoor season Dec. 1-2 at the Bast-Cregger Invitational at Roanoke College.
"I feel good despite taking that break because you are never sure," Needs said. "We do feel that we have outstanding athletes who come in and transition well. We have some who were really working hard this week and it's a great revelation as to see what can happen. You don't go into this one thinking we will get 18 people lock their places into nationals but you see the progress that they have already made early on."
Needs' group was recently selected to finish fourth in the South Atlantic Conference on both the men's and women's sides following the league's announcement on Jan. 7.
The C-N men received 84 points in the poll with the women grabbing 76. The Eagles edged the Anderson Trojans who rounded out the top-five of both genders and finished behind the likes of Lenoir-Rhyne, Wingate, and Queens who took last year's indoor league title.
Coach David Needs' men's side earned a fourth-place finish in the SAC's inaugural indoor year in 2017-18 with the women earning a sixth-place mark.
The league also announced its yearly watch list which features three athletes on both the men's and women's sides of each team, all of which have the opportunity to be standouts in conference meets and beyond. The list includes a sprinter, distance, and field athlete.
A standout during his freshman year, Devon Moore returns as an All-American runner for C-N's group coming off an appearance in the 60m dash at NCAA's following the indoor season. The Baxley, Ga. native, who also plays wide receiver for the Eagles, did not run during the outdoor campaign due to injury. Moore was named the SAC's Indoor Freshman of the Year in 2018 after the championships in which he added national qualifying times in the 60m and 200m dash. He was an all-region selection in both events holding the school record in the 200m at 21.43 seconds.
Kristofer Potts-Howard, who was named the SAC Indoor Athlete of the Year in 2018, was named as a watch list member for the field events. The Tullahoma, Tenn. product collected top-four finishes in three different events during the single-day league championship. He also holds a school record as a member of the 4x400 which came last season (3:24.73). Potts-Howard also grabbed U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association All-Academic honors and was a USTFCCA All-Region Selection in the long jump.
Luke Greer rounds out the three Eagles named to the watch list as he comes off an All-America year as a cross country standout. The Northhampton, England native broke a school record in his first indoor meet of the year in the 5000-meter run at 14:23.60 on Dec. 8.
"We have people that we can count on," Needs said. "When you put them in a race or the finals of their event they're going to give you their best. These guys have the talent to do what they did last year and more and we have the opportunity to stack some points."
Sophomore Tia Davis earned C-N's watch list member as a sprinter in the women's program after a stellar freshman campaign in which she broke program records in the 60m and 200m events multiple times throughout the year.
As a field athlete, Samantha Gudger returns following an all-region performance in the Southeast Region in the long jump after clearing a distance of 5.87 meters in the final meet of the season. The mark also broke a new school record and helped the Bristol, Tenn. native earn a new lifetime best. Gudger was also a USTFCCCA All-Academic honoree last season.
Rachel Strayer is a C-N distance runner to keep an eye on following her nod as Freshman of the Year following the SAC Cross Country Championships. She set the school record for the 5-kilometer race at the Queens Royals Challenge on October 12th finishing 31st out of 412 runners with a time of 18:13. She finished her freshman cross-country campaign earning All-Conference and All-Region honors with her top-15 finishes at the SAC and Region Championships.
-CN-
