Track and Field Earns 23 Entries at NCAA Preliminary Rounds

TRACK & FIELD | ACC CHAMPIONSHIPS | RAVEN GRANT

Track and Field Earns 23 Entries at NCAA Preliminary Rounds

May 19, 2016 | Track & Field

Cardinals will have 24 athletes competing at the NCAA East Preliminary in Jacksonville next weekend

By: Kim Pemberton

LOUISVILLE, KY. -- Twenty three University of Louisville track and field student-athletes make up 23 total entries for the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field East Preliminary Rounds, the NCAA Division I Men's and Women's Track and Field Committee announced Thursday.

The event runs from May 26-28 at North Florida's Hodges Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. Tickets for the meet are currently on sale, and all seating is general admission. Tickets can be purchased by calling the North Florida ticket office at (904) 620-2473 or visiting the school's athletics website. On meet day, tickets will be able to be purchased at the gate starting one hour prior to the first event.

The women's squad has 10 student-athletes competing in 12 events while the men's squad qualified 13 student-athletes in 11 events.

Four athletes will compete in multiple events for the Cardinals. Emmonnie Henderson and Isaac Bowling will both compete in the shot put and the discus. Edwin Kibichiy will compete in the 3,000m steeplechase and the 5,000m. Freshman Raven Grant will compete in both the 100m and 200m.

Henderson won her second straight ACC Outdoor Championship event title as she hurled a throw of 16.55m/54-3.75. She also finished second in the discus at the ACC Championships with a season best mark of 54.04m/177-03. She was named the Women's ACC Most Valuable Field Performer for the second straight year.

Bowling won the discus at the Florida Relays this year with a personal best mark of 53.50m/175-06. He threw a season best mark of 17.56/57-7.5 in the shot put at the Rankin/Poehlein Invitational at Purdue.

In addition to Henderson, three female throwers earned spots at the preliminary rounds. Caitlin Gilmore, Dolly Nyemah and Rachel Serafin will all compete in the hammer throw. At the ACC Championships, Serafin threw a personal best mark of 59.74m/196-0 on her final throw to finish in fourth and garner second team All-ACC honors. Nyemah finished with a personal best mark of 57.19m/187-07 at the ACC Championships for a seventh place finish. Gilmore threw a personal best of 59.29 at the Florida Relays for a fourth place finish.

Kibichiy won his third conference title in the 3,000m steeplechase last weekend at the ACC Championships with a season best time of 8:34.46.

Also competing in distance events are Ernest Kibet, Calvin Chemoiywo and Kelsey Cramsey. Kibet earned second team All-ACC honors in the 10,000m at the ACC Championships with a fifth place finish. He ran a season best time of 29:32.65 at the Raleigh Relays. Calvin Chemoiywo will also compete in the 10,000m. He ran a personal best time of 29:22.91 at the Raleigh Relays. Cramsey will compete in the 800m for the Cardinals. She ran a season best time of 2:08.16 at the ACC Championships last weekend for a ninth place finish.

On the sprints side, Grant will represent the Cardinals in the 100m and the 200m. The men's 4x400m relay team will be making the first appearance NCAA Preliminary round appearance for the Cardinals in the event. Grant, a freshman, is the school record holder in the 100m for the Cardinals with a time of 11.46 at the Louisville Invitational. She also ran a personal best time of 23.68 in the 200m at the Louisville Invitational. She earned first team All-ACC honors in the 100m with a third place finish. The men's relay team of Andrew Nsuk, Martice Moore, Jeron Brown, Teague Peck, Antoine Keys hold the school record with a time of 3:08.74 set at the Florida Relays this season.

Jade Hawkins and Morgan Zacharias will compete in the Pole Vault for the Cardinals. Hawkins had a season best mark of 4.05/13-3.5 at the Lenny Lyles/Clark Wood Invitational. Zacharias recorded a personal best mark of 4.06/13-3.75 at the Rankin/Poehlein Invitational for a second place finish.

The Cardinals have seven athletes competing in the jumping events. Ben Williams will be making his second appearance in the triple jump after finishing fourth in the event last season. Williams won the ACC title for the second straight season with a season best mark of 16.41/53-10.25.

Damar Robinson will be making his first appearance for the Cardinals in the high jump. Robinson won the ACC title last weekend with a personal best mark of 2.20m/7-2.50. Javen Reeves will be making his second NCAA East Preliminary appearance. He won the high jump at the USF Bulls Invitational with a personal best mark of 2.20m/7-2.50. Linda Mutter will be competing on the women's side in the high jump. She recorded a personal best mark of 1.76m/5-9.25 at the Lenny Lyles/Clark Wood Invitational.

Bre'Yana Wash will be making her second appearance for the Cardinals in the long jump. She recorded a personal best mark of 6.30m/20-8 at the USF Bulls Invitational to win the event. She earned second team All-ACC honors with a fifth place finish in Tallahassee. Holly Hankenson will also compete in the long jump. Hankenson, the heptathlon school record holder, finished third in the long jump at the Rankin/Poehlein Invitational with a personal best mark of 6.05m/19-10.25. On the men's side, Oliver Newport will be making his first appearance for the Cardinals in the long jump. The sophomore finished third at the ACC Championships with a personal best mark of 7.78m/25-6.25, earning first team All-ACC honors.

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CARDINALS DECLARED FOR 2016 NCAA EAST PRELIMINARY ROUNDS

Men (13 Student-Athletes, 11 Entries)
Isaac Bowling - Shot Put, Discus
Calvin Chemoiywo – 10,000m
Ernest Kibet - 10,000m
Edwin Kibichiy - 1,000m Steeplechase
Oliver Newport – Long Jump
Javen Reeves - High Jump
Damar Robinson – High Jump
Ben Williams - Triple Jump
4x400m Relay Team – Andrew Nsuk, Martice Moore, Jeron Brown, Teague Peck, Antoine Keys

Women (10 Student-Athletes, 12 Entries)
Caitlin Gilmore - Hammer
Kelsey Cramsey – 800m
Raven Grant – 100m, 200m
Holly Hankenson - Long Jump
Jade Hawkins – Pole Vault
Emmonnie Henderson - Shot Put, Discus
Linda Mutter –High Jump
Dolly Nyemah - Hammer
Rachel Serafin - Hammer
Bre'Yana Wash - Long Jump
Morgan Zacharias – Pole Vault