FSU Opens NCAA Track Championships Today
Live Video Coverage
Live Results Throughout Meet
Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University women's outdoor track and field program will be represented by five different individuals at the 2012 NCAA-II Championships, which start today (May 24) in Pueblo, Colo.
The NCAA-II Championships will take place today thru Saturday (May 26) at the Neta and Eddie DeRose ThunderBowl in Pueblo. The meet is being hosted by Colorado State-Pueblo.
Live video coverage will be provided throughout the competition via the NCAA and can be found by using this direct link (scroll down to Division II Outdoor Track & Field):
http://www.ncaa.com/liveschedule
The FSU contingent taking part in the national championships includes senior Tina Muir (St. Albans, U.K.) along with juniors Zoey Hohmann (Munith/Stockbridge) and Anna Rudd (Leslie) in addition to a pair of sophomores in Samantha Johnson (Troy) and Jessica Pilling (London, Ontario/Banton).
The five Bulldog qualifiers will compete in seven total events. Both Muir and Rudd qualified individually in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters with Johnson representing FSU in the 1,500 meters. Meanwhile, Pilling will compete in the hammer throw and Hohmann will run the 400 meters at the national meet.
The women's hammer throw takes place on Thursday at 3 p.m. (MT) with the prelims of the 1,500 meters at 5:10 p.m. Action in the women's 400 meters starts at 5:40 p.m. with the women's 10,000 meters rounding out day one competition at 8:10 p.m. No Bulldogs will compete on Friday. The final day of action is on Saturday with the women's 5,000 meters taking place at 8:05 p.m. Finals will also be contested in the women's 1,500 meters at 5:35 p.m. and the women's 400 meters at 6:15 p.m.
Muir holds the fifth-fastest seed times in both the 5,000 (16:10.55) and 10,000 (33:59.67) while Rudd is 18th in the 5K (16:47.86) and 11th in the longer distance (34:51.89). A total of 19 runners have qualified to compete in the 5,000 meters with 17 set for the 10,000 meters.
Johnson is 10th in the 1,500 meters with a qualifying time of 4:27.17 among the 17 runners slated to take part in the event. Pilling's seed mark of 54.48 meters is 17th in the hammer throw. Finally, Hohmann's seed time of 55.02 in the 400 meters is 16th of 18 individuals chosen to compete at the meet.
A total of 620 participants, 310 men and 310 women, will compete in the championships. Student-athletes qualified for the championships by reaching the automatic and provisional standards established for each event.
The ThunderBowl features 6,500 seats, a synthetic turf field, a ten-lane all-weather track, throwing, jumping and pole vault areas, as well as a 27,000-square-foot field house, which includes a 4,300-square-foot strength and conditioning complex.
The Bulldog women's outdoor track and field team is currently listed 24th nationally this week in the United States Track and Field/Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Division II National Rankings heading into the national championships.