Hawks, Lady Hawks begin defense of NCCAA National Championships

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A year ago, they swept the field claiming a pair of National Christian College Athletic Association Track and Field National Championships that was highlighted by some record-setting performances by a few standouts who competed in multiple events.

But when the 2015 NCCAA National Championships return to Barron Stadium on Friday and Saturday, the Shorter Hawks and Lady Hawks will defend their crowns trading the multi-event approach for one that will help keeping them better themselves for what is still ahead.

“It would be great if we could put together another run at the championships,” Shorter head coach Scott Byrd, who has directed the program to 10 national titles and saw the team sweep the Peach Belt Conference crowns last week, said about keeping the crowns in Rome. “But there will be men and women who are coming here to compete and represent some of the finest athletes from all over the country. It’s a strong field.

“This year we want to use this meet to prepare for what’s ahead of us,” he added, noting that now that Shorter is a full NCAA member the team is now able to compete for the first time in the Division II national meet. “Our focus is improving our times, distances and heights in every event. If we do that, then we’ll have a shot at the repeating as NCCAA champs.”

At the 2014 NCCAA meet, the team was buoyed by the efforts produced by two of the program’s best-ever athletes, Lakeisha Spikes and Kirk Wilson, who each dominated the 100 meters and 200 and played a role in Shorter’s 4×100 and 4×400 relays and who not surprisingly were named the events Female and Male Runners of the Meet, respectively.

That pair has since graduated, but Shorter still boasts potent weapons. This time, however, there’s a twist – the number of athletes who compete in multiple events will be fewer, the most notable being Lady Hawk junior standout Ayana Walker.

The first Shorter athlete to win an NCAA Division II national championship, when she won the national indoor 400 title, Walker is the defending NCCAA 400 champion but this year is entered in just the 200, an event in which she is rated as the top NCCAA runner with a time of 23.96 seconds, and as part of the Lady Hawks’ 4×400 relay team.

So, too, will sophomore Jordan Cross begin the meet concentrating on just one event. The NCCAA’s top-rated runner in the 5,000 and 3,000 steeplechase, Cross’ lone appearance this year will be in the steeplechase.

“Knowing what’s ahead,” Byrd said, “we want them stay fresh and have them working on things to help them down the road.”

Still, Shorter enters the NCCAA championships with a long list of performers – the Hawks’ and Lady Hawks’ relay teams enter the meet with top times – who can contribute to the teams’ point totals.

Lady Hawks Ashley Ballard and Jasmine Crump are considered contenders in the 200 and 400, as is Kryslynn Davidson in the 100 hurdles and Cynia Clark in the hammer throw and shot put for the Lady Hawks, who will dress out 17 athletes for the meet.

The Hawks boast a plethora of possible point producers as well as Gregory Roachford, Jr. has the top time in the 400, Supun Randeniya leads the 110 hurdles field, Wake Roberds holds the top spot in the 400 and Daniel Alexis is poised to make noise in the discus and hammer throw after being named as the Peach Belt Conference’s Men’s Field Athlete of the Year.

“The Peach Belt is a solid conference and what we did in the PBC meet will help us this week,” Byrd said.

Among the teams looking to end Shorter’s national reign includes Bethel, which respectively finished second and fourth in the men’s and women’s final standings last year; Indiana Wesleyan’s women, a third-place finisher in 2014; and Greenville’s men, which was fourth a year ago.

A pair Peach Belt Conference members joins Shorter in the field, Lee and Mississippi College, while Lone Star Conference member McMurry University returns to the meet after taking last year off.

The championship opens Friday morning at 8:30 a.m. when the decathlon and heptathlon competition starts and at 2:30 p.m. the field events – the throw events will be held at the Riverside Parkway Throws Center – and the running preliminaries begin. The day concludes with the finals of the 10,000 and 4×800 relay starting at 7:20 p.m.

On Saturday, the meet resumes action at 10:30 a.m. with the final field events taking place as well as the finals in 11 races.

“We are truly blessed that Shorter and Rome is hosting the NCCAA championship,” Byrd said of the meet, which is being presented by Coach O Event Management. “There are some great teams and athletes who will be competing and we know we have our work cut out for us.”

Source: Rome News

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