HARGRAVES, MOULTRIE QUALIFY FOR 2012 NCAA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
2012 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships Central
COMMERCE, Texas -- Once again, A&M-Commerce will have a pair of representatives on the national track and field stage as senior Aysha Moultrie and junior Whitney Hargraves qualified for the 2012 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships held Thursday, May 24 through Saturday, May 26 in Pueblo, Colo. Moultrie will compete in the heptathlon while Hargraves will compete in the long jump.
Moultrie competed in the heptathlon twice this past season, provisionally qualifying for the national meet both times. She registered 4,558 points at the Texas State Invitational on April 7 while placing third, then bested that mark by nearly 300 points at the Lone Star Conference Championships, recording 4,844 points for a third-place showing. She set a new LSC heptathlon record in the 200 meter in the process, running a 24.77.
Hargraves has been the Lions' top long jumper all season, recording five of the six best marks of the 2012 season, including her season-best 5.94 meter leap at the Lone Star Conference Championships en route to a second-place finish. An All-LSC selection, she had a pair of provisionally qualifying jumps on the year, including a 5.85 meter showing at last week's Incarnate Word Last Chance Meet, and also provisionally qualified in the triple jump with a mark of 12.13 meters.
A&M-Commerce will look to build off last season's success at the NCAA National Championships where a pair of Lions placed among the top-10 in their respective events. La'Shara Jefferson finished fourth in the discus while Starasia Childs placed ninth in the triple jump.
The 2012 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships are hosted by Colorado State-Pueblo and will be held at the ThunderBowl, one of the nation's top Division II facilities. 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, team meeting areas, and student-athlete study-areas and lounges.
The 2012 NCAA Championships get underway Thursday, May 24 and run through Saturday, May 26. Heat and flight information will be available on Monday, May 21 with full results being posted as they become available at LionAthletics.com.