University of Tennessee Athletics
Photo by: Cayce Smith/Tennessee Athletics
Lady Vols Qualify Seven Entries To Nationals To Wrap Up NCAA East Prelims
May 27, 2023 | Track & Field, Cross Country
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Tennessee track & field concluded the 2023 NCAA East Preliminary Rounds with the Lady Vols securing seven berths to the national championships on Saturday at Hodges Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida. In total, the Big Orange is set to send 17 athletes with 20 entries qualified for the NCAA Championships in Austin, Texas.
Graduate student Charisma Taylor had a hand in three tickets punched on Saturday, beginning with the women's 4x100-meter relay finishing 10th overall with a time of 44.24. After a strong showing at the SEC meet two weeks prior, the Lady Vol team of Jacious Sears, Jonah Ross, Taylor and Nicole Sreenan finished fourth in Saturday's second heat and grabbed the next to last timed qualifying spot, making the cut for nationals by .19 seconds.
About an hour later, Taylor stepped on the track again for the 100-meter hurdles quarterfinal and secured an automatic bid to NCAAs, taking third in Heat 1 with a wind-aided time of 12.80 seconds (+4.4 m/s). The Nassau, Bahamas, native then transitioned to the triple jump runway, where she finished as the top qualifier out of the East Region with a leap of 13.95m (45-9.25) on her first attempt—topping the second-place finisher from Georgia by more than 17 inches.
The versatile Lady Vol already had one qualifying mark under her belt entering the day after placing 11th in Thursday's long jump competition with a mark of 6.23 meters (20-5.25).
Sears also punched a pair of individual tickets on Saturday with heat victories and second-place overall finishes in both the 100- and 200-meter dash quarterfinals. The senior speedster went 11.04 in the 100-meter with a slight tailwind (+2.3 m/s) before throwing down a wind-aided 22.48 (+2.1 m/s) in the 200-meter to qualify for nationals in her third event of the evening.
Lady Vol freshman Javonya Valcourt's campaign will continue in Austin after finishing fifth overall in the 400-meter quarterfinals with a time of 52.31. The Bahamian international placed fourth in her heat and was the fastest timed qualifier on Saturday, running her fastest mark in a Tennessee uniform.
The 4x400-meter relay quartet of Valcourt, Kyla Robinson-Hubbard, Sears and Jonah Ross capped the meet with an automatic berth to the NCAA meet, taking second in the second heat with a time of 3:32.08. Sears and Ross split 52.89 and 51.94 seconds, respectively, on the final two legs as the squad placed fifth overall and third among SEC schools in the region.
Full results from the 2023 NCAA East Preliminary Rounds can be accessed via Flash Results, Inc.
UP NEXT: Tennessee's national qualifiers will travel to Austin, Texas, for the 2023 NCAA Outdoor National Championships, set for Wednesday through Saturday, June 7-10 at Mike A. Myers Stadium.
Graduate student Charisma Taylor had a hand in three tickets punched on Saturday, beginning with the women's 4x100-meter relay finishing 10th overall with a time of 44.24. After a strong showing at the SEC meet two weeks prior, the Lady Vol team of Jacious Sears, Jonah Ross, Taylor and Nicole Sreenan finished fourth in Saturday's second heat and grabbed the next to last timed qualifying spot, making the cut for nationals by .19 seconds.
About an hour later, Taylor stepped on the track again for the 100-meter hurdles quarterfinal and secured an automatic bid to NCAAs, taking third in Heat 1 with a wind-aided time of 12.80 seconds (+4.4 m/s). The Nassau, Bahamas, native then transitioned to the triple jump runway, where she finished as the top qualifier out of the East Region with a leap of 13.95m (45-9.25) on her first attempt—topping the second-place finisher from Georgia by more than 17 inches.
The versatile Lady Vol already had one qualifying mark under her belt entering the day after placing 11th in Thursday's long jump competition with a mark of 6.23 meters (20-5.25).
Sears also punched a pair of individual tickets on Saturday with heat victories and second-place overall finishes in both the 100- and 200-meter dash quarterfinals. The senior speedster went 11.04 in the 100-meter with a slight tailwind (+2.3 m/s) before throwing down a wind-aided 22.48 (+2.1 m/s) in the 200-meter to qualify for nationals in her third event of the evening.
Lady Vol freshman Javonya Valcourt's campaign will continue in Austin after finishing fifth overall in the 400-meter quarterfinals with a time of 52.31. The Bahamian international placed fourth in her heat and was the fastest timed qualifier on Saturday, running her fastest mark in a Tennessee uniform.
The 4x400-meter relay quartet of Valcourt, Kyla Robinson-Hubbard, Sears and Jonah Ross capped the meet with an automatic berth to the NCAA meet, taking second in the second heat with a time of 3:32.08. Sears and Ross split 52.89 and 51.94 seconds, respectively, on the final two legs as the squad placed fifth overall and third among SEC schools in the region.
Full results from the 2023 NCAA East Preliminary Rounds can be accessed via Flash Results, Inc.
UP NEXT: Tennessee's national qualifiers will travel to Austin, Texas, for the 2023 NCAA Outdoor National Championships, set for Wednesday through Saturday, June 7-10 at Mike A. Myers Stadium.
Players Mentioned
Hurdles/Sprints
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Sprints
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Sprints
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Sprints
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Jumps/Hurdles
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Sprints
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