By Katie Kane for MSNsportsNET.com
June 09, 2011 08:39 PM
DES MOINES, Iowa – Three West Virginia University competitors walk away from day two of the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships as third team all-Americans.
Senior Keri Bland earned the honor, finishing 18th overall in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 4:24.
 |
|
| Chelsea Carrier competes in the 200-meter dash during today's heptathlon competition at the 2011 NCAA outdoor track and field championships in Des Moines, Iowa. | |
| Kirby Lee photo | |
|
00.
“Keri Bland just ended her career as the most decorated female track and field athlete in school history,” coach Sean Cleary said. “She has never wavered in her commitment to this team or her individual career. Keri needs some time off to heal and set her sights on next year’s Olympic trials.”
Senior Katelyn Williams cleared 1.76 meters on the third attempt in the high jump, landing 18th place and earning third team all-American honors.
“After no-heighting in last year’s championships, Katelyn came out and cleared her first two bars,” Cleary said. “Coming home with all-American accolades should give her the confidence to concentrate on reaching the podium at next year’s indoor championships.”
Senior Chelsea Carrier started the day with a first-place finish in the women’s heptathlon 100-meter hurdles with a time of 13.31, scoring 1,078 points. She reached 1.69 meters in the high jump and threw a distance of 11.76 meters in the shot put for 645 points and 11th place in the event. Her final heptathlon event was the 200-meter dash and ended just before her final event of the day in the 100-meter hurdles. Carrier took first place in the 200-meter dash with a time of 23.95. Carrier currently sits in second place in the heptathlon with 3,551 points, on the heels of Ryann Krais from Kansas State, who leads with 3,585 points.
Carrier earned her third team all-America honor as she crossed the finish line of the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 13.56, taking 19th place overall.
“Chelsea came into this competition ranked second in the country, and goes to bed tonight in second place after day one (in the heptathlon),” Cleary said. “A tough break with the scheduling had Carrier run her final event of the day in the heptathlon just minutes before she was required to run the hurdle semifinal. After winning the 200-meter run in the second-best time of her life, she just didn’t have enough time to recover from her long day for hurdles. A good night’s rest should see Chelsea ready for competition tomorrow.”
The heptathlon will conclude on Friday with the long jump, javelin throw and the 800-meter run.
In addition to live stats, the entire NCAA Championships will stream live online at NCAA.com, and feature two separate streams to cover the majority of the action both on the track and with the field events.
CBS Sports Network will air the contest live from 7:30-9:30 p.m., on Friday and www.NCAA.com/GoDrakeBulldogs.com will webcast portions of the meet that are not broadcast on TV.