March 12, 2008
Complete Notes
Official NCAA Info
FORT WORTH, Texas - Seven members of the TCU track and field team will return to the track this week at the NCAA Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. The two-day meet begins on Friday, March 14 with the men's heptathlon.
"We look forward to the challenge of going back up to Arkansas and competing at the biggest meet of the indoor season," said Darryl Anderson. "If I had to pick two women to go to the NCAA meet with, it would definitely be Virgil and Neidra because those two have been solid all year. I feel good about both of their chances this weekend.
"On the men's side, Jonathan Jackson has been very consistent and has a chance to be in the top-3 on Saturday. We really like his chances heading into this weekend. Finally, our mile relay team finally got on the track together last weekend and we are looking for big things from them this weekend," said Anderson.
Following the heptathlon, the rest of the NCAA Championships will begin with the women's weight throw starting at 12:00 p.m. at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville. The Flyin' Frogs will open competition at 6:30 p.m. with the women's 60-meter dash prelims.
Competing for the TCU women this weekend are Neidra Covington (long jump, triple jump) and Virgil Hodge (60 meters, 200 meters), while on the men's side Jonathan Jackson (men's triple jump) and the men's 4x400 relay unit of Matthew Love, Dell Guy, Che Chavez and Clemore Henry will represent the Purple and White at the NCAA's.
Overall, Covington, a sophomore from St. Petersburg, Fla., will begin competition on Friday at 7:00 p.m. with the women's long jump. Hodge, who is a five-time All-America honoree, will open at 6:30 p.m. with the women's 60 meters. On Saturday, Jackson, a senior from Grand Prairie, will take to the runway at 5:30 p.m. with the men's triple jump, while the 4x400 unit will close out competition at the NCAA Championships at 8:05 p.m.
In 2007, the women's team finished tied for 41st place with five total points at the championships. Overall, the Flyin' Frogs earned five All-America certificates.
In its last outing, TCU's men's 4x400 unit of Clemore Henry, Dell Guy, Che Chavez and Matthew Love, who barely missed clocking an NCAA automatic, recorded an NCAA provisional time of 3:07.03 seconds to place first overall at the Last Chance Meet in Fayetteville. The quartet's mark qualified them for the this weekend.
Last Year At The NCAA's
On the first day of competition, Virgil Hodge set a TCU record while earning All-America status in the women's 200 meters at the 2007 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships.
Hodge's time of 22.99 in the 200 meters placed seventh. Auburn's Kerron Stewart won with a mark of 22.58. Just .09 seconds separated Hodge from the 22.90 posted by second-place finisher Kelly Ann Baptiste of LSU.
Hodge shattered her previous school-record time of 23.27. The members of the TCU women's 4x400 relay squad smashed the school record and garnered All-America honors on the final day of competition at the NCAA championships in Fayetteville.
Senior Deborah Jones, sophomore Kishelle Paul, senior Jamee Jones and senior Nathandra John placed sixth in the event with a clocking of 3:34.75. South Carolina won the race with a time of 3:29.57.
"I'm really happy," head coach Darryl Anderson said. "We really ran well. We had some adversities to overcome as far as training the past few months, so for the group to come out and run season bests and school records, it really says a lot about how hard they've worked."
Information About The NCAA Championships
The NCAA Championships begin on Friday morning with the men's heptathlon competition and run through Saturday night at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville, Ark. Reserved tickets for the two-day meet sell for $35, while general admission tickets are $25. Single-day tickets may be available at the gate for $15 per day.
Real-time scoring will be available on www.ladybacks.com, and complete results at the conclusion of each day can be viewed at www.gofrogs.com. Live results will also be available on www.gofrogs.com each day.
2008 will mark the ninth consecutive season in which Fayetteville will host the NCAA's.
Faces At The NCAA's
Jonathan Jackson will compete at the NCAA's in the triple jump after hitting an NCAA automatic qualifying mark at the Mountain West Conference Championships. The senior captured the triple jump title at the MWC Championships with an NCAA automatic leap of 16.26m (53-04.25). His jump broke his own school record in the event set earlier this winter and is currently ranked as the fourth best leap in the NCAA. Jackson placed third last season at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the triple jump.
Neidra Covington will compete in the triple and long jump at the NCAA Championships after successfully defending her MWC triple jump crown with an NCAA automatic leap of 13.41m (44-00.00) in Colorado Springs, Colo. Her leap is currently the eighth best jump in the NCAA.
Virgil Hodge will compete in both the 60 and 200 meters after posting top-times of 7.32 and 23.33, respectively. Hodge won both events at the conference championship and was honored with the Women's Outstanding Performance honor at the end of the meet. Hodge placed seventh in the 200 meters at the 2007 NCAA Indoor Championships with a time of 22.99.
The men's 4x400 unit goes into Saturday having qualified by crossing the finish line in 3:07.03 seconds to place first overall at the Last Chance Meet last weekend.
Anderson Honored As South Central Region Coach of the Year
TCU head coach Darryl Anderson was named the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association's 2008 Women's South Central Region Coach of the Year on Monday. Anderson led TCU to its first conference title since 2004 and first in the Mountain West Conference. Individually, Anderson was honored at the end of the meet as the MWC Women's Coach of the Year. Overall at the MWC Championships, TCU won 12 different event titles, set three new school records and posted two NCAA automatic marks.
Flyin' Frogs Enter Ranking
The TCU women come into the NCAA's ranked No. 43 in the country by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association, while the men are currently ranked 34th.
Individually, TCU ranks in the top 18 in six different events. Virgil Hodge is currently sitting at No. 9 in the NCAA in the 200 meters and No. 16 in the 60 meters, while sophomore Neidra Covington cracks the ranking in the long jump at No. 17 and in the triple jump at No. 8. On the men's side, senior Jonathan Jackson has recorded the fourth-best leap in the nation in the triple jump, while the men's 4x400 unit comes into this weekend at the No. 6 position in the relay ranking.
Winning It All
When the TCU women won the 2008 Mountain West Conference Indoor Championship two weeks ago it marked its first conference title since 2004 and first in the Mountain West Conference. The Flyin' Frogs captured 12 individual conference titles and the women's conference championship at the Mountain West Conference Indoor Championships. The men turned in a second-place finish for its highest finish ever in the MWC.
Recording NCAA Provisional Marks
Overall during the 2008 indoor season, TCU posted two NCAA Automatic and 12 NCAA provisional marks in 12 different events. Flyin' Frogs who have recorded automatic or provisional marks in 2008 are Andon Mitchell, Mychal Dungey, Che Chavez, Sean Zurko, Jonathan Jackson, Virgil Hodge, Kishelle Paul, Stormy Harrison, Neidra Covington, JimAnne Hejny and the men's and women's 4x400-relay unit.
Home Meet Information
TCU for the first time in school history will host three meets this spring at the Lowdon Track & Field Complex, including the Mountain West Conference Championships. TCU will kickoff its outdoor season with the second annual Horned Frog Invitational on March 22. Th Flyin' Frogs will then host the ninth annual TCU Invitational on April 18-19 and the Mountain West Conference Outdoor Championships on May 14-17.
Up Next
The Flyin' Frogs will open its outdoor season at home on March 22. TCU will host the second annual Horned Frog Invitational at the Lowdon Track and Field Complex next Saturday. Teams expected to compete are North Texas and UT-Arlington.
