2 Hoosiers qualify to compete at NCAA Championships

In the indoor track and field season, IU sent three athletes to the NCAA Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. This weekend, the Hoosiers went back to Fayetteville with the possibility of sending as many as six athletes to compete in NCAA Outdoor Championships in two weeks.\nIU competed Friday and Saturday in Fayetteville in the NCAA Mideast Regional, one of four qualifying meets for the NCAA Championships in Des Moines, Iowa, on June 12-14.\nThe men’s team finished in 10th place with 19 points, while the women finished in 35th with three points. \nJunior Jeff Coover and senior Kyle Jenkins automatically qualified for the championships after placing in the top five in their events. \nCoover, who came into the pole vault with the eighth-best mark in the country, finished fourth in the event with a jump of 5.21 meters or just over 17 feet. Coover’s vault was the highest for him since he went 5.35 meters at the Sea Ray relays on April 12.\nSenior Kyle Jenkins competed in the triple jump Saturday and came away with the runner-up finish with a leap of 16.17 meters, which converts to just more than 53 feet. \nOn the women’s side, senior Courtney Johnson led the way for the Hoosiers. Johnson advanced to the finals in the 100-meter hurdles with a career best time of 13.12 seconds. \nIU coach Ron Helmer said he was excited about how well Johnson did in her race.\n“13.12 is one of the fastest times in the country,” he said. “I’m happy for her, she deserves it.”\nJohnson beat her previous best time by nearly .3 seconds and improved her national ranking in the event from 23rd to 12th.\nGoing into the preliminary races, Johnson knew she would have to battle hard because of the strength of the competition in the meet just to get to the \nfinal race.\n“Everyone had to run for their lives to make finals,” she said.\nJohnson qualified for the final race and finished seventh with a time of 13.24 seconds.\nAlthough she is not guaranteed a spot in the national championships, Helmer said he is fairly positive Johnson will receive an at-large bid to \nthe meet.\nThe final decision on which athletes will complete the national field will be released early next week.\nOther athletes that Helmer thinks can get at-large bids are senior Kiwan Lawson, who finished 6th in the long jump and Vera Neuenswander, who finished 8th in the pole vault. Helmer also said junior Molly Beckwith might have a shot in the 800-meter run.\nThe Hoosiers sent a total of 23 athletes to the regional meet, but many of the younger kids did not do as well as their coach would have liked.\n“The ability to go in with confidence was not there,” he said.\nHelmer said many of the younger and less experienced athletes did not handle the level of competition well, but sees them getting better with more opportunities to compete in the future.\nOne of the younger athletes, freshman Paul Haas, threw a career best in the discus of 172 feet 9 inches.\nHelmer hopes that with more experience the athletes that are determined and motivated to get better will do just that.\n“It will help everyone who is driven to succeed,” he said.