Two qualify for NCAA championships

Ten members of the West Virginia track and field team went to the campus of the University of North Florida this weekend for the 2012 NCAA East regional.

Senior Chelsea Carrier-Eades opened up the regional Thursday by advancing to the finals of the long jump.

She finished the preliminary round in 13th place with a jump of 6.15 meters to advance to the finals. Carrier-Eades advanced with her three attempts of 5.89 meters, 6.09 meters and 5.98 meters, respectively. She was one place shy of reaching the NCAA championships.

"The long jump was a bittersweet event for us," said head coach Sean Cleary. "While all three jumpers placed much higher than they came in ranked, we did believe that all three had a shot to move on to the finals in Iowa."

Other events Thursday included senior Meghan Mock finishing 23rd in the long jump with 5.97 meters, while sophomore Stormy Nesbit reached 5.78 meters for 35th place. Senior Stephanie Caruso competed in the 10,000-meter run, as she finished in 41st place with a mark of 37:37.23.

The action continued Friday with the 100-meter hurdles. Carrier-Eades and sophomore Chene Townsend competed in the event. Carrier-Eades finished eighth overall with a time of 13.13 seconds. The time was second in her heat, and she advanced to the quarterfinals, which are scheduled for Saturday evening. Townsend also advanced to the quarterfinals with a time of 13.47 seconds. She finished fifth in her heat and was just shy of her personal best. Winning the event was Central Florida’s Jackie Coward with 12.97 seconds.

"Chelsea and Chene were very steady in qualifying," Cleary said. "Chelsea knocked a hurdle and recovered very well. Chene ran a strong opener and was true to form. The level of competition at this meet is simply world-class."

In the high jump event junior Sydney Cummings achieved a lifetime-best height of 1.77 meters, which was good for a 19th-place finish.

"She came and jumped the same height as some of the girls who qualified to go to Iowa (for NCAA championships), and she proved she can compete at the national level by emerging with a clutch performance," Cleary said.

Saturday, a pair of Mountaineers advanced to the 2012 NCAA championships in Des Moines, Iowa, at Drake University on June 6-9.

Carrier-Eades continued her journey in the NCAA East regional with a seventh-place finish in the 100-meter hurdles of 13.10 seconds. With the time, she advanced to the championship rounds in Iowa. Carrier-Eades will also compete in the heptathlon in Iowa.

Senior Jessica O’Connell placed 10th overall in the 5,000-meter run in 16:26.18. With the time, she was able to qualify for the championship rounds.

Other action Saturday included Stormy Nesbit finishing 27th in the triple jump with her distance of 12.45 meters. Townsend was almost able to qualify for Iowa in the 100-meter hurdles, but fell short with a 16th-place finish at 13.45 seconds. Only the top 12 in each event advance.

Finishing the day was senior Terina Miller, who finished in 29th place in the hammer throw with her 53.90-meter mark.

The next event will be the 2012 NCAA Outdoor Championships in which O’Connell and Carrier-Eades will represent WVU.