University of Connecticut Athletics
Ten Huskies Qualify For NCAA East Regional
5/24/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track and Field
May 24, 2011
NCAA East Regional Information
STORRS, Conn. - The University of Connecticut men's track and field team will send 10 athletes to the NCAA East Regional this weekend, which is taking place at the Robert C. Haugh Track and Field Complex on the Indiana University campus. Action will begin on Thursday, May 26 and continue through Saturday, May 28, with a complete schedule available HERE.
"All 10 of our student-athletes that have qualified for the NCAA Championship are sharp and ready to compete this weekend," head coach Greg Roy said. "Based on performance we are right where we want to be, in the hunt for moving athletes to the next rounds. At this stage, everyone has an opportunity because qualifying is based on head-to-head competition. The most we have ever sent to the finals of the NCAA Championship was five, and we are hoping to break that record this year and with the group of athletes that we have going, I think we have a good shot."
UConn's 10 qualifiers ties the most that the Huskies have had in the last 10 years, as they also had 10 last season. Five of those qualifiers have top-25 marks in the east region, led by Mike Rutt who is ninth in the 800m run (1:48.57). Five Huskies have also qualified for the NCAA Championship for the first time in their careers, including; Noel James, Aaron King, Joshua Faboyede, Cody Unger and Justin Siekierski.
Rutt, who has qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championship in each of his four seasons, will represent the Huskies in the 800m run as he enters the race with the ninth fastest time (1:48.57), which he recorded at the BIG EAST championship. He will be joined by classmate Dan Holst, who has the 29th best time in the region after finishing in 1:49.78 at the IC4A championship. Rutt and Holst will be competing on Thursday (May 26), as the first round of the men's 800m run begins at 8:00 p.m.
Kyle Edmonds will be the only other athlete to compete in a track event for the Huskies, as he will participate in the 400m hurdles. Edmonds enters the weekend with the 27th best time, a 51.96 that he recorded at the BIG EAST championship. The first round of the men's 400m hurdles will be the first running event on Thursday, beginning at 4:00 p.m.
The Huskies will have athletes competing in four field events on the first day of action, with Cody Unger and Justin Siekierski in the javelin, Mike Alleman in the shot put, Noel James in the high jump and Aaron King in the long jump.
Unger is the only other Husky to have a top-15 mark coming into the meet, as he ranks 12th regionally in the javelin with a mark of 71.23m. Unger recorded his season-best mark earlier this year at the Miami Hurricane Alumni Invitational. Joining Unger in the javelin is Siekierski who enters the meet with a season-best mark of 62.88m which ranks him 48th. The qualifying round of the javelin will be the first event for the Huskies on Thursday, beginning at 12:00 p.m.
Alleman enters the weekend with the 23rd best mark in the region in the shot put, after winning the IC4A title in the event with a distance of 17.59m. The qualifying round of the shot put is set for 1:00 p.m. on Thursday.
James and King will also compete on Thursday for UConn, James in the high jump and King in the long jump. King currently has the 23rd best mark in the long jump, after recording a distance of 7.57m at the BIG EAST championship, while James has the 27th best mark in the high jump (2.13m). The high jump event is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m. with the long jump starting at 6:00 p.m.
King, who will also be competing in the triple jump, is just the third Husky to qualify for more than one event at the NCAA Championship in the past five years, joining Ellis Gaulden (2009) and Aaron Isaacs (2007). King comes into the meet with the 24th best mark in the triple jump after posting a season-best of 15.47m at the BIG EAST championship. Also competing for UConn in the triple jump will be Tyrone Faverey, who won the BIG EAST title with a mark of 15.57m and currently has the 20th best mark in the east region. The qualifying round of the triple jump will start at 6:00 p.m. on Friday (May 27).
Joshua Faboyede is the final Husky to qualify for the NCAA Championship and will compete in the hammer throw. Faboyede's season-best mark of 60.63m that he set at the IC4A championship two weeks ago ranks him 26th in the region. The qualifying round of the hammer throw will begin at 11:00 a.m. on Friday.
The top12 finishers in each event at the NCAA East Preliminary Round meet will qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships, scheduled for June 8-11 in Des Moines, Iowa. They will be joined in Des Moines by 12 qualifiers per event from the NCAA West Preliminary Round meet, which will take place next weekend in Eugene, Ore.
Players Mentioned
