Liberty Twilight Qualifier Set for Wednesday
5/2/2017 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field
Meet Schedule
Performance List
Live Results
Lynchburg Weather
The Liberty men's and women's outdoor track & field teams will wrap up both their 2017 home schedule and regular season on Wednesday, playing host to the Liberty Twilight Qualifier at the Matthes-Hopkins Track Complex.
Competitors from 33 different colleges and universities, along with numerous Olympians, are scheduled to take part in the one-day event. The meet will get started at 11:30 a.m. with the women's discus, while running events will begin at 2 p.m. with the men's 100 dash.
Liberty's 20 seniors will be recognized on the track at 5 p.m., followed by the second annual Sparky Sprint, which will see children ages 12 and under race 100 meters against Liberty's mascot.
How to Follow the Flames and Lady Flames
Live results will be available throughout the meet.
Additionally, periodic updates will be posted to the Liberty Gameday Twitter account (@LUGameday).
Weather Report
Pleasant weather is forecasted for Wednesday, with sunny skies and a high temperature reaching the low 70s.
Salute to Seniors
At 5 p.m., Liberty's 20 seniors will be honored on the track during the team's fifth annual Senior Night celebration. The Flames' 2017 senior class, which has combined for 18 Big South individual event titles and 63 All-Big South honors, includes Aklesso Agama, Ryan Davis, Zach Davis, Zach Gilroy, Spencer Jamison, Luke Jelen, Blake Kohring, Stephen Racanelli, Nicole Bishop, Kat Bouton, Lindsey Bray, Kaitlyn Hutchins, Janae Jones, Dana Mercer, Catherine Oyarzun, Jessie Proehl, Audrey Rabe, Hannah Scherlacher, Mary Witmer and Terrill Zentmeyer.
Big South Preview
One week before the 2017 Big South Outdoor Track & Field Championships begin, the conference's No. 1 competitor will be in action in 11 different events on Wednesday.
Men's 200 – Liberty's Jahquez Durham
Men's 400 – Liberty's Stephen Racanelli
Men's 4 x 100 Relay – Liberty
Men's Long Jump – Winthrop's Quemell Brave
Men's Pole Vault – Liberty's Carson Waters
Women's 200 – Campbell's Janai Scott
Women's 800 – High Point's Keaton Case
Women's 1,500 – Liberty's Anna Van Wyk
Women's 4 x 100 Relay – Campbell
Women's Pole Vault – Liberty's Jessie Glynn
Women's Discus – High Point's Makenzi Holmes-DiGiovine
The men's pole vault competition, set to begin at 2 p.m., will be a true conference preview. The field of entrants features eight of the Big South's top nine vaulters in 2017, including Liberty's Carson Waters (No. 1, 16-10), High Point's Carter Clasper (No. 2, 15-7), Liberty's Ryan McCann (No. 3, 15-6.5), Liberty's Zach Davis (Tie for No. 4, 15-1), Liberty's Reilly Stroot (Tie for No. 4, 15-1), Winthrop's Joey Jennings (No. 6, 14-9), Liberty's Markus Ballengee (Tie for No. 7, 14-6.25) and High Point's Isaiah Henderson (Tie for No. 7, 14-6.25).
Olympians Aplenty
Eight Olympians appear on the Liberty Twilight Qualifier start lists, including Jeffery Gibson (Bahamas, men's 400 hurdles), Ramon Gittens (Barbados, men's 100 and 200), Leford Green (Jamaica, men's 400 hurdles), Muhammad Halim (Virgin Islands, men's triple jump), Sekou Kaba (Canada, men's 110 hurdles), Oluwasegun Makinde (Canada, men's 100 and 200), Barbara Pierre (Haiti, women's 100) and Darrell Wesh (Haiti, men's 100 and 200).
Sada Williams, who is entered in the women's 200 on Wednesday, made the 2016 Olympic team for Barbados but had to withdraw due to injury.
Danielle Williams, slated to run the women's 100 and 100 hurdles, won the 2015 world title for the women's 100 hurdles, representing Jamaica.
Meanwhile, Johnny Dutch of the United States ranks No. 19 in world history for the men's 400 hurdles at 47.63 and is slated to run that event Wednesday evening.
Fast 1,500s
The Liberty Twilight Qualifier has seen some impressive mid-distance performances over the years, and Wednesday could be no different.
The men's 1,500 is set to begin at 7:35 p.m. and features 66 competitors, making it the largest event of the meet. The facility record of 3:46.09 could be in jeopardy, as the field is headlined by 3:58 miler Donnie Cowart. Liberty's Colin Schultz, who is redshirting the 2017 outdoor season, just ran a personal-best time of 3:47.14 on Saturday at the Virginia Grand Prix. Two past Big South champions will be running, including 2015 1,500 champion Vinny Todaro of High Point and 2016 steeplechase champion Kevin Mills of Winthrop. Also entered is Christopher Newport's Jeffery Dover, who ranks No. 7 nationally in Division III at 3:50.83.
On the women's side, Liberty's Anna Van Wyk tops the conference at 4:30.05 but will have to deal with the High Point duo of Cozette Collin and Natalia Ocasio. Collin is the defending Big South 1,500 champion, while Ocasio has captured back-to-back Big South steeplechase crowns. Lynchburg freshman Natalie Deacon also bears watching. The NCAA Division III indoor All-American in the mile won the Liberty Collegiate Invitational 800 title in 2:11.66 last month.
Big South's Best
With the 2017 Big South Outdoor Track & Field Championships slated for May 10-12 in Charleston, S.C., Liberty currently ranks No. 1 in the conference in the following events:
Men's 200 – Jahquez Durham (21.68)
Men's 400 – Stephen Racanelli (48.12)
Men's 110 Hurdles – Jovaine Atkinson (14.01)
Men's 400 Hurdles – Ryan Davis (52.02)
Men's 4 x 100 Relay – Ryan Davis, Stephen Racanelli, Greg Edwards, Jahquez Durham (41.08)
Men's 4 x 400 Relay – Jahquez Durham, Spencer Jamison, Michael Todd, Stephen Racanelli (3:12.55)
Men's High Jump – Zach Davis (6-9.75)
Men's Pole Vault – Carson Waters (16-10)
Men's Triple Jump – Darrel Jones (51-3)
Men's Javelin – Denzel Pratt (226-4)
Men's Decathlon – Zach Davis (6,898)
Women's 400 – Tanner Ealum (54.33)
Women's 1,500 – Anna Van Wyk (4:30.05)
Women's 5K – Anna Van Wyk (17:40.37)
Women's 4 x 400 Relay – Tanner Ealum, Delaney McDowell, Nicole Leonzo, Olivia Behymer (3:40.32)
Women's High Jump – Kylie Polsgrove (5-8)
Women's Pole Vault – Jessie Glynn (12-6.75)
Women's Triple Jump – Janae Jones (41-9.75)
Women's Shot Put – Dasiana Larson (46-1.5)
Women's Hammer – Dasiana Larson (196-3)
Women's Javelin – Brenna Smith (145-0)
Women's Heptathlon – Kylie Polsgrove (5,184)
Lexington Ledger
The 2017 NCAA Division I East Preliminary Round meet will be contested May 25-27 at the University of Kentucky Outdoor Track & Field Facility in Lexington, Ky.
At this stage of the 2017 outdoor season, the following Flames and Lady Flames are in contention for a berth in the meet, which will determine the qualifiers for the 2017 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
Lock
Jovaine Atkinson (Men's 110 Hurdles)
Ryan Davis (Men's 400 Hurdles)
Alexander Hoffsmith (Men's Javelin)
Darrel Jones (Men's Triple Jump)
Janae Jones (Women's Triple Jump)
Azaria Kirwa (Men's 5K & 10K)
Dasiana Larson (Women's Hammer)
Denzel Pratt (Men's Javelin)
Carson Waters (Men's Pole Vault)
On the Bubble
Samuel Arter (Men's Javelin)
Zach Davis (Men's High Jump)
Stanley Langat (Men's 5K)
Kylie Polsgrove (Women's High Jump)
Brenna Smith (Women's Javelin)
Michael Todd (Men's 800)
Mary Witmer (Women's 400 Hurdles)
Tanner Ealum, Mary Witmer, Nicole Leonzo, Olivia Behymer (Women's 4 x 400 Relay)
