STEPHENVILLE - Tarleton State had four student-athletes qualify for the 2013 Division II Outdoor National Championship Track and Field meet Tuesday afternoon. Of the 13 Texans and TexAnns to reach qualifying marks this season, these four athletes were chosen to compete for a national championship in their respective events.
From the men's team, Chase Rathke and Davene Carter were selected to compete in the 800m Run and the High Jump, respectively. Rathke earned a Lone Star Conference championship in the 800m Run with his NCAA provisional mark of 1:50.56. That time earned him the No. 10 ranking in the nation and makes him the only Tarleton athlete to earn a top-10 qualifying spot in the championships.
Carter, a multisport-athlete, competed in just four meets this season but hit the NCAA provisional mark in his last two events. He hit the mark with a leap of 6' 9.5'' at the LSC Championships for a second-place finish before improving his rankings with a 6' 10.25'' jump at the ACU Last Chance Meet. Carter will enter the championships ranked No. 18 in the nation in men's high jump.
On the women's side, All-American Nikki McNorton returns to national championships with a chance to repeat her All-American status in the high jump in addition to running in the 100m Hurdles. Danyelle Dillard also qualified for the tournament as the No. 15-ranked shot putter in the nation.
McNorton hit the NCAA provisional mark in the 100m Hurdles four times over the course of the season but improved her standings by running a school-record 13.82 in the finals of the LSC Championship. She will be the No. 18-ranked player in the 100m Hurdles. She will also take the momentum of back-to-back first-place finishes and NCAA marks in the high jump into the championships. She won the LSC High Jump Championship with a leap of 5' 7.75'' before topping 5' 8'' in the ACU Last Chance meet to earn the No. 12 ranking in the women's high jump.
Dillard, in her first season with Tarleton, hit the NCAA provisional mark in the shot put four times throughout the season. Her longest throw of the season came in the ASU David Noble Relays when she set a school record with a launch of 47' 3.75'' en route to a first-place finish.
These athletes will travel to Pueblo, Colorado May 23-25 for the event, which will take place at the Neta & Eddie DeRose Thunderbowl. For the NCAA Championship page sponsored by the NCAA, click
here. For the schedule of events, click
here.
