Four Student-Athletes Head to the NCAA Mideast Regionals
5/28/2009 12:00:00 AM | TRACK AND FIELD
CHICAGO - Four members of the DePaul men's and women's track and field team travel to Louisville, Ky., to compete in the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships on May 29-30. Alanna Kovacs, Mary Cate Quiett, Brad Millar, and Joe Strawder enter the field for the Blue Demons on Friday and Saturday at the Cardinal Park Soccer and Track Stadium.
Quiett opens competition with the 800m preliminary race at 3:40 p.m. (CT). Last season as a freshman, she finished in 13th place behind a time of 2:09.33. Quiett enters this year's regional championship with a season-best time of 2:09.19, while her personal-record stands at 2:08.35. The top eight student-athletes advance to the finals on Saturday at 4:25 p.m.
Kovacs gets Saturday's action underway when she enters the javelin throw competition at 10 a.m. The freshman punched her ticket to the regionals after placing fourth at the BIG EAST Conference Championships with a throw of 44.61m.
Two-time BIG EAST hammer throw champion Millar enters his third Mideast Regional in as many years as the third seed. His season-best throw of 64.79m ranks him 16th nationally. The junior has accumulated a team-best nine NCAA Regional qualifying marks, and has surpassed the standard at every meet this season. Millar enters the throwing field at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday.
Two-time long jump qualifier Strawder makes his debut at the Mideast Regional in the triple jump. The junior leaped beyond the 15.00m qualifying mark twice this season during the preliminary and final rounds of the Sun Angel Track Classic. His season-best distance of 15.18m currently ranks him 19th in the region. The men's triple jump takes place on Saturday at 4 p.m.
Notably missing for DePaul is javelin thrower Melissa Fraser. Last season as a freshman, she became the first Blue Demon female thrower to qualify for the NCAA Championships after placing third in the Mideast Regional with a school-record throw of 49.52m. Earlier this season she met the standard with a throw of 48.16m, but will not be competing at this year's regional championship.
For season performance lists, championship schedule and more, see the track and field notes, which are linked at the top of the page. Results will be posted at www.depaulbluedemons.com after the conclusion of the meet, while www.deltatiming.com will be providing updated results throughout the day.
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