ULM earns program-best 11 regional track entries

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The ULM track and field programs will send an astounding 10 student-athletes, the most in program history, to compete in 11 events at the NCAA East Regional Championships on May 28-30.

ULM’s 11 entries comes after it won six different events (most since 1995) at the 2015 Sun Belt Outdoor Championships and earned 11 All-Conference selections including eight on the first team.

From the women’s team, the Warhawks will be sending sophomores Adriunna Brown (long jump), Alexis Gordon (discus) and Mi’Ca Lowe (javelin).

The men will see junior Corey Wesley compete in both the long jump and triple jump along with sophomore Jemal Parharm Jr. in the long jump. Also representing ULM will be seniors Jamel Sams (400m hurdles), Isaac Grieder (pole vault), juniors Andrew Tate (400m) and Joey Womack (javelin), and sophomore Jevaughn Shaw (discus).

To earn an entry, an individual must have placed his/her season-best score among the top-48 in the eastern-half of the nation this year.

Brown, from Macon, Georgia, won the long jump at the SBC Championships and was named to the All-Conference first team. Her personal-record leap of 6.06m came at the Leon Johnson Invitational. Brown was named SBC Field Athlete of the Week on April 5 and enters the competition as the No. 46 seed.

Gordon, a native of Chalmette, threw a personal-record 51.02m in the discus at the SBC Championships to place fourth. She won the discus competition at both the UCA Open and Jim Mize Invitational this season. Gordon earned the No. 27 seed at Regionals.

Lowe, a product of Walker, will make her second straight regionals appearance in the javelin. She won the gold medal at the SBC Championships after her third first-place finish of the season. Lowe’s personal-record throw of 46.38m at the Texas Relays landed her the No. 35 seed. She was honored on the All-Conference first-team.

Wesley, from Plano, Texas, will be the lone Warhawk to compete in two events as he makes his second consecutive regionals appearance. He earned runner-up in the triple jump with a personal-record of 15.36m and placed fourth in the long jump at the SBC Championships. Wesley’s season-best in the long jump came at the Leon Johnson Invitational where he won it with a leap of 7.65m. The All-Conference second-team selection enters as the No. 15 seed in the long jump and No. 38 in the triple jump.

Parharm, a native of Avondale, will also compete in the long jump after his personal-record jump of 7.56m at the SBC Championships earned him a silver medal. He won SBC Field Athlete of the Week on Jan. 28 and enters the competition as the No. 26 seed. Parharm was honored on the All-Conference second team.

Sams, a product of Longview, Texas, looks to avenge a heartbreaking finish at last year’s regionals where he came 0.02 seconds away from making it to the finals in the 400m hurdles. His season-best time of 51.85 this year earned him the No. 36 seed. Sams was honored on the All-Conference first team after running the second leg of the winning 4x400m relay team that finished at 3:09.47. He earned a bronze medal in the 400m hurdles.

Tate, from Schertz, Texas, was crowned champion of the 400m at the SBC Championships. In the meet prior, he came 0.07 seconds away from breaking the school record in the event as he ran a 46.42 at the Leon Johnson Invitational to earn the No. 19 seed. Tate won the Demon Invite this year and was also named to the All-Conference first team.

Grieder, a native of Garland, Texas, competes in his best event in the decathlon, the pole vault, after he broke both the school and SBC Championships decathlon record of 7,301 points. His huge leap of 5.07m in the vault was what ultimately propelled him into the record-books and earned him the No. 39 seed. Grieder also placed fourth individually in the pole vault outside of the decathlon. He will be making his second straight regionals appearance in the event after being named to the All-Conference first team.

Womack, a local product from West Monroe, will be the fourth Warhawk to compete in his second consecutive regionals as he enters in the javelin. He won it at the SBC Championships with a clutch final throw of 65.34. Womack finished first in the javelin at four different meets this season. He fired a personal-record 66.97m at the Texas Relays to earn the No. 28 seed. Womack was an All-Conference first-team selection.

Shaw, from St. James, Jamaica, earned a silver medal in the discus at the SBC Championships with a personal-record throw of 55.97m. That toss landed him the No. 23 seed. The All-Conference second-team honoree won the discus at both the Carl Kight Invitational and Demon Invite this season.

To advance to the NCAA Finals in Eugene, Oregon, on June 10-13, a student-athlete must finish in the top-12 at Regionals.