NCAA East Regional Preview

(Christian Coleman-Tennessee)

The post season is now in full swing and next up is the regional championship. I admit I am still no fan of the regional concept in track and field. I honestly believe it is a waste and another wasted opportunity for athletes to heal up and get better. This is only a qualifying meet there essentially is no regional championship. 

This preview post is all about the Eastern Region. This is a very tough regional qualifying meet and there will be a few top tier athletes who will not be heading to Nationals. Below are the five biggest events that I’ll be watching at this weekend’s East Regional meet.

Opinion: My hope for the future is that the NCAA will change this and match the same selection process at the Indoor meet. What makes the Indoor meet so great is the fact it is the best 16 athletes per event and top 12 relays. I think with an outdoor process it could be the best 24 athletes and the best 16 relays. Alas we are left with the current format.

Women

100 METER DASH

Enter Aleia Hobbs of LSU. She proved the hype about her win she ran a 10.85 in the 100 at the SEC Relays wind legal. It is the second fastest time in NCAA history and the fastest low-altitude. School record holder Dawn Sowell still owns the NCAA record with a time of 10.78. Hobbs is the first athlete since the early 90’s to challenge the time.

400 Meter Dash

Senior Shakima Wimbley of Miami leads an outstanding Miami group that is currently ranked 1-2-3 in the region. Wimbley had a minor hiccup early in the outdoor season put returned to form at the ACC Championships where she clocked in at 50.40 a new personal best an NCAA leading time. Wimbley was the indoor champion and if she qualifies to nationals will be the favorite to win it all.

5,000 & 10,000 Meter Run

Anna Rohrer of Notre Dame is having a great freshman season and seems to be well on her way to being the next great distance runner from Notre Dame. She enters the 5,000 as the number three ranked entrant and the 10,000 as the number one ranked entrant. She is attempting quite the impressive double so young but with her performances this year we cannot be surprised if she qualifies as the top entrant in both events heading to nationals.

100 Hurdles

Jasmine Camacho-Quinn surprised everyone except herself last season win she won the 100 hurdles at the NCAA Championships last season. It was expected that Cindy Ofili of Michigan would win and finally get the Outdoor title that her sister got so many times before. Quinn stepped up an took the crown and has looked pretty solid so far this outdoor season. She enters at the number two entrant behind Devyne Charlton of Purdue but she perhaps is still the favorite to arrive at Nationals number one with her blazing speed.

Triple Jump

What will Keturah Orji jump next. She never ceases to amaze and has been at the top of this event since she was a freshman. Orji has broken the NCAA and American record multiple times and already seems to be in great shape heading into the championship season. She leads the NCAA with her mark of 46’11 ½ more than a foot farther than her closest competitor. Orji has kept a low profile this outdoor season only having competed twice, expect for her to be ready for a big mark either this weekend or at Nationals.

MEN

200 Meter Dash

The question is how many guys in this race will go under 20 seconds. Although it is only a qualifying meet there are still only 12 spots available for this regional. This region is full of quality 200 meter runners so there will be no shutting it down at the end of the race. Christian Coleman enters at the top guy with a time of 19.97 and recently joined a rare club being a man who ran under 10 seconds and 20 seconds in the same meet on the same day. Coleman is having a career year and has not lost since the SEC Indoor Championships running the 200. Coleman will use this as another opportunity to prove that he is the best.

5,000 Meter Run

Justyn Knight of Syracuse lit the collegiate distance world on fire a few weeks when he beat Edward Cheserek of Oregon at the Payton Jordon Invitational in the 5,000-meter race. His time properly placed at the top of the NCAA rankings where he has remained since. He has more than 20 seconds on the rest of the field. With Cheserek out of the NCAA’s with a back-injury Knight is in perfect position to win the national title.

400 Hurdles

Senior Eric Futch of Florida is the defending NCAA Champion in the 400 meter hurdles. He was recently beaten at the SEC Championships by Kemar Mowatt of Arkansas. He also ranks number 3 in the NCAA. Although he is the defending champion he has a climb to make to return to the top spot. First things first beat the guy who is ranked number one this weekend in North Carolina junior Kenny Selmon.

Hammer Throw

Senior Rudy Winkler of Cornell is the latest Ivy League prospect competing for a national title. He was mentioned quite a bit this indoor season and has translated his indoor success outdoors. He is ranked 2^nd in the NCAA and 1^st in the region. Winkler can use this competition to draw closer to the number one competitor who has more than 7 feet lead on him.

4x100 Relay

There are so many great teams in this event. There are three teams listed with times under 39 seconds they are LSU, Florida and Western Kentucky. LSU is the defending NCAA Champion and have yet to lose this outdoor season. LSU looks to add more relay hardware to their impressively historically trophy case. They should enter nationals at the top seed after this weekend.