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ATLANTA, GA --- May 17, 2003 --- Clayton College & State University junior Tony Juarez ran with the “big boys” of Division I Saturday at the Georgia Tech Invitational and held his own, placing 15^th in the 1500m run Friday, shattering his own school record by almost two seconds.  

Juarez won his heat with a time of 3:50.97, bettering 22 Division I runners in the field of 37. He also competed in the 800m event on Saturday, placing 33^rd out of a field of 46 runners with a time of 1:54.84.  

A native of East Hazel Crest, IL, Juarez barely missed making the Division II National Championships in the 1500m this season. He provisionally qualified for the NCAA Division II meet earlier this season with a time of 3:52.77 at the Samford University Twilight but was 24^th on the list of qualifiers at season’s end and the NCAA chose only the top 18 for the race.  

Juarez’s time of 3:50.97 at the Georgia Tech Invitational Friday would have moved him up to 17^th on the NCAA Division II provisional qualifying list and secured him a spot in the national meet, but the qualifying deadline for the NCAA Division II Championships was last week.  

“We were just one week short of him making it,” said head coach Mike Mead. “However, this was another good experience for Tony. He won both of his heats in the 800m and the 1500m events in a very competitive Division I meet. He was the only Division II runner in the field.” 

Last week, Juarez won Florida State University’s Seminole Twilight, but he was hoping to get pulled to a time faster than his best of 3:52.77 in the meet, much like he did Friday at Georgia Tech.  Seeded sixth fastest in the FSU meet, Juarez ended up with a much slower field then promised and ended up out-kicking Florida State's Giscard Titus to win in 3:54.03.   

“Coming this close to making nationals, will be a huge motivation for Tony in his senior season,” said Mead. “Now, he knows that he can do it. He will just have to stay focused and continue to work hard to put himself in the same situation next season.” 

Juarez’s performances at the Georgia Tech Invitational close the season for the CCSU men’s and women’s track teams. The Lakers set a combined 15 school records in the 2003 season.  

---LAKERS---

Juarez wins 1500m at FSU Twilight   TALLAHASSEE, Fla., May 10, 2003 -- Clayton State junior Tony Juarez came away with a win while sophomore Carlos Guyton ran the second fastest 400m in Clayton State track history Saturday night at the Seminole Twilight meet, hosted by Florida State University.  On the women's side, Kim Daniel improved her personal best in the 1500m, while Aletha Binion and Heather Krehbiel had season-best efforts. 

Juarez, tuning up for a possible trip to the NCAA Division II national meet later this month was hoping to get pulled to a time faster than his best of 3:52.77.  Seeded sixth fastest in the meet, Juarez ended up with a much slower field then promised and ended up out-kicking Florida State's Giscard Titus to win in 3:54.03.  Laker Head Coach Mike Mead had hoped the field would have helped Juarez to a 3:51. 

"Tony and I were disappointed that the field was not more aggressive," said Mead.  "Three guys who would have helped push the pace dropped out at the last minute before the start.  The win was nice, but time was much more important." 

Juarez (East Hazel Crest, Ill.), currently ranked 27^th on the NCAA Division II performance list must wait until Tuesday to find if he'll advance to next week's national meet. "Last year 19 runners in the 1500m made it to the national meet," said Mead.  "But some runners have qualified in multiple events.  Those with better standings in other events will likely scratch from the 1500m, allowing Tony to move up on the list.  Only time will tell." 

Guyton turned in the fastest 400m by a Clayton State runner since 1999.  The Thomasville, Ga. native ran 48.76 to finish seventh in the competitive field.  "Carlos had a major breakthrough in the 400," said Mead.  "With the proper strength training, there is no reason he shouldn't break our 400 record (48.34) next season." 

Also running personal bests at FSU were juniors Elijah Ajayi (Riverdale, Ga.) and Stephen Hughes (Hampton, Ga.).  Ajayi clocked a 22.72 in the 200m while Hughes ran a PR of 1:57.52 in the 800m.  Also running in the meet for the Lakers was Adil Berkhedle (Scarborough, Ontario) with a 1:55.91 800m time and Njoroge Ngaruiya (Kiambu, Kenya) who placed seventh with a 16:03.31 in the 5,000m. 

Daniel (Macon, Ga.) finished ninth in the 1500m with a best of 4:47.72.  Krehbiel (Peachtree City, Ga.), also in the 1500m event, ran a personal best of 5:03.09.  Binion (Bowdon, Ga.) improved her season mark in the discus with a throw of 116-10 to place seventh. 

"We did not bring many ladies to this meet, but the ones who competed turned in their best performances of the season and that was our goal for this meet," said Mead. 

While Juarez awaits his fate, he'll be tuning up for at least one more meet this season when he'll be the lone Clayton State representative at the Georgia Tech Invitational this weekend.

Juarez was one of three Clayton State runners to compete in Saturday's meet hosted by the University of Georgia. Berkhedle (Scarborough, Ontario) was hoping to run a qualifying time in the 800m, but had a slight muscle pull that took him out of the running. Kim Daniel (Macon, Ga.) was the lone female competitor for Clayton State, finishing 10^th in the 1500m run with a time of 4:58.16.

Women's Meet Results; Men's Meet Results
BIRMINGHAM, AL --- April 26, 2003 --- Clayton College & State University 1500m runner Tony Juarez bettered his chances of qualifying for the NCAA Division II National Championships, and the Lakers men’s and women’s track & field teams shattered a handful of records Saturday at the Samford Twilight in Birmingham, AL.  

For the second straight week, Juarez broke the school record in the 1500m run, recording a time of 3:52.77, almost a second lower than last week’s time of 3:53.61 at the University of Alabama Huntsville meet.  

His performance improves his NCAA provisional time and will more than likely improve his chances of making the national meet. The automatic qualifying time for the men’s 1500m run in this year’s NCAA Championships at Edwardsville, IL, is 3:47.00. 

Juarez, a junior from East Hazel Crest, IL, placed second in the 27-man field, falling by less than a second to unattached runner Wayne de Minor. Juarez bettered 14 Division I runners in the event from schools such as the University of Alabama, the University of Auburn, Birmingham Southern College and Samford University.  

“Tony’s running with a lot of confidence and determination right now,” said head coach Mike Mead. “I think running a couple of weeks ago at the Sea Rays Relays and seeing first hand that he can compete at the national level boosted his confidence and has helped him breakthrough in these last two meets.” 

 Clayton State posted three school records in the meet and had several athletes record personal bests, led by sophomore Kim Daniel (Macon, GA). Daniel placed third in the 3000m race with a new school record time of 10:47.62, breaking former runner Denny Rauch’s record of 10:48.94 set in 2000.  

Daniel also recorded a personal best time of 4:48.46 in the 1500m race, finishing fourth. She is less than eight seconds from provisionally qualifying for the national meet.  

“Kim (Daniel) had the best meet of her young career,” said Mead. “She improved her 1500m time by 10 seconds from last week, and if she can improve by eight more seconds, she will provisionally qualify for nationals.”  

Freshman Njoroge Ngaruiya (Kiambu, Kenya) broke the school record in the 3000m race, placing 12th with a time of 9:07.82. He bettered his own record set last week at the UAH Invitational by almost 12 seconds.  

In other events for the women’s squad, junior Aletha Binion (Bowdon, GA) won the discus with a throw of 110-feet-5 inches and placed fourth in the javelin with a toss of 89-feet-1 inch. Junior Penny Tinker (Mesa, AZ) finished 11th in the 800m run with a time of 2:34.11, followed by Stephanie Gilbert, 15th, with a time of 2:42.30.  

Behind Daniel in the 1500m race, freshman Heather Krehbiel (Peachtree City, GA) placed 11th with a time of 5:07.02, followed by Tinker in 15^th with a time of 5:16.48 and Gilbert 16th at 5:17.04. Krehbiel finished sixth in the 3000m race with a time of 11:02.80.  

On the men’s side, sophomore Carlos Guyton (Thomasville, GA) finished fourth in the 400m dash with a time of 49.56 seconds. Juarez placed sixth in the 800m run with a time of 1:56.05, followed by sophomore Adil Berkhedle (Scarborough, Ontario) in eighth with a time of 1:56.31.  

Junior Stephen Hughes (Hampton, GA) ran a personal best time of 1:58.15 to finish 12th in the 800m, followed by sophomore Ron Robertson (Claxton, GA), recording a personal best time of 2:00.88, finishing 21st.  

In the 100m dash, junior Elijah Ajayi (Riverdale, GA) finished 12th with a time of 11.35 seconds, followed by sophomore Lawrence Kelley (Marietta, GA) in 16^th at 11.69. Ajayi and Kelley finished 11th and 18th in the 200m race with times of 22.83 and 23.92, respectively.  

Behind Juarez in the 1500m race, Ngaruiya placed 13th with a time of 4:09.47, followed by freshman Shane Kersten (Hinesville, GA) in 24th with a time of 4:20.47 and sophomore Scribner Malloni (Milford, OH) 27th with a time of 4:29.86. 

Berkhedle finished 14th in the 3000m run with a time of 9:24.68, followed by Kersten in 17th at 9:34.97 and Malloni in 18th at 10:07.27. Clayton State’s 4x400m relay team of Guyton, Ajayi, Hughes and Juarez placed third with a time of 3:25.36.  

Ajayi finished ninth in the long jump with a distance of 19-feet-1-1/4 inch, while Jed Foster (Morrow, GA) placed 13th in the javelin with a throw of 101-feet-10 inches.  

Clayton State will return to the track on May 10th with a select squad at the FSU Seminole Twilight at Florida State University in Tallahassee, FL.  

---LAKERS---

HUNTSVILLE, AL --- April 19, 2003 --- Clayton College & State University 1500m runner Tony Juarez provisionally qualified for the NCAA Division II National Championships Saturday, winning the event with a new school record time of 3:53.61 at the University of Alabama-Huntsville Invitational in Huntsville, AL.  

Juarez, a junior from East Hazel Crest, IL, bettered the 14-man field by more than 10 seconds as second place finisher Reed Fisher of Harding University came in a distance second with a time of 4:04.20. Juarez’s school record time broke his own mark of 3:54.92 that he set last season at Florida State’s Seminole Twilight, which also met last year’s NCAA provisional standard.  

“I am extremely happy for Tony (Juarez),” said head coach Mike Mead. “He is a hard-worker and a dedicated runner. He is way ahead of last season’s pace, and now that he has met the provisional time, he can concentrate on improving his time in the remaining meets.”  

Juarez met the NCAA provisional time last season but was not selected to compete at nationals, as there were too many provisional qualifiers ahead of him. The automatic qualifying time for this year’s NCAA meet in Edwardsville, IL, is 3:47.00. 

Along with Juarez’s performance, the Lakers had three other record-setting performances as junior Aletha Binion (Bowdon, GA) broke her own school mark in the javelin with a toss of 96-feet 11-3/4 inches, good for third place. Sophomore Carlos Guyton (Thomasville, GA) bettered his own record in the high jump, clearing six-foot-seven inches to win the event. Freshman Njoroge Ngaruiya (Kiambu, Kenya) placed sixth in the 3000m run with a time of 9:19.30 and established a new record in the event that is seldom run at the collegiate level. 

Guyton also placed fourth in the 400m with a time of 49.16, which is just over a second from provisionally qualifying for the national meet. Sophomore Adil Berkhedle (Scarborough, Ontario) placed second in the 800m with a time of 1:57.12, while Ngaruiya finished third in the 5000m race with a time of 15:40.78.  

On the women’s side, sophomore Kim Daniel (Macon, GA) placed second in the 1500m run with a time of 4:58.36, while sophomore April Taylor (Memphis, TN) finished fourth in the 400m dash with a time of 1:01.75.  

In other events for the men’s squad, junior Elijah Ajayi (Riverdale, GA) finished 10th in the 100m dash with at time of 11.50 seconds, followed by sophomore Lawrence Kelley (Marietta, GA) in 15th with a time of 11.93. Guyton finished seventh in the 200m with a time of 22.74, followed by Ajayi and Kelley in 11th and 12th place with times of 22.93 and 23.66, respectively.  

Juarez finished fifth in the 800m with time of 2:00.73, while senior Stephen Hughes placed (Hampton, GA) seventh with a time of 2:01.05. Sophomore Ron Robertson (Claxton, GA) finished 11th with a time of 2:07.80.  

Berkhedle finished fifth in the 1500m run with a time of 4:13.05, while Hughes placed 10th with a time of 4:25.16, followed by sophomore Scribner Malloni (Milford, OH) in 12th at 4:31.60.  

Freshman Shane Kersten (Hinesville, GA) finished in 11th place in the 3000m race with a time of 9:59.06, followed by Malloni in 12th with a time of 10:10.38. Ajayi finished fifth in the long jump with a leap of 20-foot six-inches, while freshman Jed Foster (Morrow, GA) placed ninth in the javelin with a throw of 95-feet two-inches.  

Clayton State’s 4x400m relay team placed third with a time of 3:24.56, and the 4x100m relay team placed fourth with a time of 43.86.  

In other events for the women’s team, freshman Heather Krehbiel (Peachtree City, GA) placed fourth in the 1500m run with a time of 5:06.44, followed by junior Penny Tinker (Mesa, AZ) in fifth at 5:16.18 and sophomore Stephanie Gilbert (Jonesboro, GA) in sixth at 5:17.96.  

Krehbiel placed ninth in the 3000m run with a time 11:13.31, followed by Gilbert in 12th with a time of 12:21.53. Tinker finished eighth in the 800m run with a time of 2:32.07.  

Clayton State’s Taylor finished fifth in the high jump, clearing 5-foot, while Binion placed second in the discus with a throw of 106-feet 11-inches. The Lakers’ 4x400m relay team finished third with a time of 4:31.67.  

The CCSU men’s and women’s squads will return to action on Saturday, April 26, traveling to compete in the Samford Twilight in Birmingham, AL.  

--LAKERS--

KNOXVILLE, TN --- April 14, 2003 --- Clayton College & State University track & field runners Tony Juarez and Adil Berkhedle each participated in the highly touted Sea Rays Relays Friday at the University of Tennessee, and each proved they can compete with some of the top NCAA Division I runners in the nation.  

Juarez placed 34^th in a field of 44 runners with a season best time of 3:56.62, while Berkhedle finished 46^th in a field of 55 runners with a time of 1:55.04, his second best time of the year.  

“This was a wonderful experience for both Tony and Adil,” said head coach Mike Mead. “They both got the opportunity to run in a world-class meet and compete against some of the nation’s top runners.” 

Juarez’s time was two seconds from provisionally qualifying for the NCAA Division II Nationals, while Berkhedle’s time was less than three seconds from reaching the NCAA Division II provisional standard.  

“Tony ran his best time of the season and Adil his second best,” said Mead. “They are progressing and are on pace to hit their provisional times. Cool conditions this weekend slowed the times for everyone. Tony and Adil really tried to push the pace in their heats.” 

Southwest Missouri State’s Blake Boldon won the 1500m event with a time of 3:42.73, while Georgetown’s Jesse O’Connell won the 800m race with a time 1:47.97.  

Clayton State’s full men’s and women’s squads will return to action on Saturday, traveling to compete in the University of Alabama Huntsville Invitational in Huntsville, AL. The meet will be at the Alabama A&M track. The team’s meet last week at Cumberland College was cancelled due to flooding.

  --LAKERS--

ALBANY, GA --- April 5, 2003 --- The Clayton College & State University's men’s and women’s track & field teams shattered five school records and brought home five first place finishes Saturday in the Albany State University Alice Coachman Invitational in Albany, Georgia.  

Adil Berkhedle (Scarborough, Ontario, Canada), Tony Juarez (East Hazel Crest, Ill.) and Njoroge Ngaruiya (Kiambu, Kenya) all brought home first place finishes on the men’s side, while Kim Daniel (Macon, GA) and Stephanie Gilbert (Jonesboro, GA) won events on the women’s side.  

Berkhedle bettered his own school record in the 800m event, winning the race with a time of 1:54.74, which is less than two seconds from provisionally qualifying for the NCAA Division II Championships.  

Juarez remained undefeated in the 1500m event, winning with a time of 3:56.95. Like Berkhedle, he is also nearing a NCAA Championships provisional time, less than three seconds from the qualifying time.  

“Adil and Tony both had good meets and are on pace to hit their NCAA provisional times,” said head coach Mike Mead. “Who knows, we may have a couple of more. Overall, I was pleased with our performances on Saturday.” 

Clayton State’s 4x100m relay of Ron Robertson (Claxton, GA), Carlos Guyton (Thomasville, GA), Elijah Ajayi (Riverdale, GA) and Lawrence Kelly (Marietta, GA) set a new school mark with a time of 42.70, placing fourth. Jed Foster (Morrow, GA) bettered his school record in the discus with a throw of 104-foot-10 inches. 

On the women’s side, Daniel won the 1500m race with a time of 4:56.12, while Gilbert won the 5000m race with a time of 21:49.00. April Taylor (Memphis, Tenn.) picked up two school records, breaking the high jump mark, clearing 5-foot-2, and breaking the 200m record with a time of 27.04.  

Daniel placed third in the 800m with a time of 2:22.90, followed by Penny Tinker (Mesa, Az.) seventh with a time of 2:30.97.  

In other top men’s finishes, Guyton had personal best times in the 200m and 400m events. He placed ninth in the 200m with a time of 22.43 and fourth in the 400m with a time of 49.06. Ajayi finished seventh in the 100m with a time of 10.95, while Stephen Hughes (Hampton, GA) finished sixth with a personal best time of 1:59.04 in 800m race. Ngaruiya had time of 4:13.16 to finish fourth in the 1500m event.  

ATLANTA, GA --- March 29, 2003 --- Clayton College & State University's Carlos Guyton and Tony Juarez combined for two first place finishes and three fifth places to lead the Laker Track & Field team to a seventh place finish out of 22 teams Saturday at the Emory University Classic in Atlanta, GA.  

Guyton (Thomasville, Ga.) played a part in 28.5 of Clayton State’s 51.5 points on the day, winning the 400m race with a time of 49.54, placing fifth in the finals of the 200m event with a time of 23.01and tying for fifth in the high jump, clearing 6-foot. In addition, he anchored Clayton State’s 4x100m relay team that finished third, bringing home six points and the 4x400m relay squad that placed sixth, which was good for three points. 

Juarez (East Hazel Crest, Ill.) won the 1500m race, posting the third fastest time in Clayton State history and his third fastest time ever at 3:57.98. His time was four seconds from provisionally qualifying for the NCAA Division II National Championships. He also placed fifth in the 5,000m with a time of 15:30.26, his second fastest time in the event.  

            “This was definitely Carlos’ best overall meet,” said head coach Mike Mead. “He was a warrior today, running back-and-forth from the 200m and 400m races to the high jump and then to relays. Tony also shined and is well ahead of last year’s pace when he provisionally qualified for nationals in the 1500m.” 

The Lakers shattered two school records in the meet as the 4x100m relay team of Warren van der Westhuizen (Johannesburg, South Africa), Lawrence Kelley (Marietta, Ga.), Elijah Ajayi (Riverdale, Ga.) and Guyton set the 4x100m record and Westhuizen set a new mark in the javelin throw. The relay team’s time was 43.37 seconds, while Westhuizen broke his own school record with a throw of 177-feet-3 ½ inches.  

Adil Berkhedle (Scarborough, Ontario, Canada) placed sixth in the 800m run with a time of 1:56.76, while CCSU’s 4x400m relay team of Kelley, Ajayi, Berkhedle and Guyton placed sixth with a time of 3:29.22.  

“I am extremely happy with the finish of our men,” said Mead. “We placed higher than three Division I schools (Western Carolina, Furman and Wright State), and several other schools like Clark Atlanta that have long established track programs.” 

The seventh place team finish is the program’s highest ever at Emory, and the 51.5 points were less than 10 points from fourth place. Host Emory won the meet with 108 total points.  

On the women’s side, Kim Daniel (Macon Ga.) had the two top performances, placing fifth in the 800m run with a time of 2:24.73 and sixth in the 1500m run with a time of 5:03.15. Junior Aletha Binion (Bowdon, Ga.) came inches from a personal best in the javelin throw with a toss of over 91 feet to place eighth and had a season best throw in the discus at 106-feet-10 inches to place 13th.  

Anchored by a strong final leg from April Taylor (Memphis, Tenn.), Clayton State’s 4x400m relay team of Penny Tinker (Mesa, Ariz.), Binion, Daniel and Taylor placed ninth with a time of 4:22.60. 

Heather Krehbiel (Peachtree City, Ga.) placed 10th and 11th , respectively, in the 5,000m and 1500m races with times of 19:32.20 and 5:08.94, while Tinker finished 12th in the 800m race with time of 2:30.62.  

Both Clayton State’s men’s and women’s teams will return to the track on Saturday, April 5, competing in the Alice Coachman Invitational hosted by Albany State University in Albany, GA.  

####

ATLANTA, March 15, 2003 -- The Clayton College & State University's Tony Juarez (East Hazel Crest, Ill.) was "Tony Trifecta" on Saturday as he led the Lakers to three of five impressive first place finishes at the weather-plagued Morehouse Relays. In addition, three more school records were improved in the women's javelin, and the men's 4 x 200 and distance medley relays.

Clayton State Track Teams Combine 
for Six Records at OU Meet

ATLANTA, GA -- March 8, 2003 -- The Clayton College & State University track and field squads opened their 2003 outdoor season by combining for six school records and 11 first place finishes at the Oglethorpe University Invitational on Saturday.  The men's team scored the most points on the track among the four teams competing, while the short-handed ladies team finished a respectable third out of four teams competing.

Junior Elijah Ajayi (Riverdale, Ga.) and senior newcomer Warren van der Westhuizen (Johannesburg, South Africa) figured in on three of the school records.  Ajayi finished third in the 100m with a time of 11.10, but ran a manual time of 10.75 to better the Lakers' old mark, also hand-timed, of 10.79 set by Cory Wood in 1999.  Westhuizen opened the meet by winning the javelin with a throw of 147-5 to establish the Laker mark and later teamed with Ajayi, Carlos Guyton (Thomasville, Ga.) and Ron Robertson (Claxton, Ga.) with a second place finish in the 4 x 200m for a team-best 1:32.35.

Guyton, a sophomore, attributed to wins in the high jump and anchored the Lakers' winning 4 x 400m relay.  Junior Tony Juarez (East Hazel Crest, Ill.) broke his own 5,000m record as Clayton State took the first four places.  Juarez shattered his old record of 15:58.23 by running 15:30.00.  Teammate Njoroge Ngaruiya (Nairobi, Kenya) also bettered Juarez' former record, finishing second in 15:53.00.

The remaining records came in the field events.  Sophomore Jed Foster (Morrow, Ga.) bettered the team discus mark with a throw of 86-8 to finish third.  The lone women's record was set by junior Aletha Binion (Bowdon, Ga.), who finished second in the javelin with a throw of 85-10.

"It was sure nice to get this meet under our belts and see where we really need to work," said Laker head coach Mike Mead.  "I was surprised that we set six records.  We dominated almost every running event we competed in.  Of the eight running events that our men competed in, we won five of them.  The same goes for the women, too.  They won all three distance events and won one of the two relays we ran.  As expected, we did not run great times.  But with that said, our 5,000m guys turned in the best effort we've ever had in a meet!"

The Lakers got additional wins from Adil Berkhedle (Scarborough, Ontario, Canada) in the 800m, as well as a leg on the 4 x 400m, Shane Kersten (Hinesville, Ga.) in the mile and the 4 x 800m relay team of Juarez, Ngaruiya, Robertson, and Stephen Hughes (Hampton, Ga.).  Firsts on the women's team came from Kim Daniel (Macon, Ga.) in the 5,000m, Heather Krehbiel (Peachtree City, Ga.) in the mile, Penny Tinker (Mesa, Ariz.) in the 800m and the 4 x 800m of Daniel, Krehbiel, Tinker and Stephanie Gilbert (Jonesboro, Ga.).

Host Oglethorpe won the women's team title, followed by Paine, Clayton State and Stillman.  Paine won the men's title, followed by Oglethorpe, Clayton State and Stillman. Both Clayton State teams will be back in action next Saturday at the daylong Morehouse Relays in Atlanta.

MORROW, Ga., ^{March 6, 2003 -- Clayton College & State University's track and field program opens its seventh outdoor season this Saturday with both men's and women's squads running at the Oglethorpe University Invitational in Atlanta. The Laker squads hope to build on their previous success with an even mix of veteran talent and promising youth.}

In 2002, both squads set a combined 20 school records and had one from each squad run NCAA Division II provisional times in the 1500m. Women's senior Joni Guffey advanced to the NCAA championship meet in Texas and earned All-America honors, finishing sixth in the 1500m finals. While Guffey is gone, junior Tony Juarez (East Hazel Crest, Ill.) returns as the other provisional qualifier in 2002. Juarez will be seeking his first trip to the NCAA championship meet in May, which will be run in his home state of Illinois.

Head Coach Mike Mead; allow with assistant coach Hugh Toro and volunteer coach Clive Caesar have several athletes besides Juarez who could also get to the championship meet. The 10-meet schedule Mead has plotted out this spring should help those vying for NCAA qualifying marks. The schedule consists of a mix of small and large meets. The Lakers' first four meets will all be in the metro Atlanta area. Besides Oglethorpe, the Lakers will run at the Morehouse Relays on March 15, the Emory Classic March 28-29 and the Yellow Jacket Invitational at Georgia Tech April 5. The Lakers hope to have representation at a University of Tennessee meet on April 11, followed with meets in Kentucky, Alabama and Florida. A select group will go to the national meet site (SIU-Edwardsville) for a late April meet to get a feel for the track, in case they make it to nationals.

"On paper, our men's squad looks very promising," said Mead. "We have a little larger squad and we have more quality in some of our events. We'll have more representation in the field events than we've ever had in our seven seasons. The guys have trained consistently in the off-season and we've had a good month of training, leading into Saturday's meet. I don't expect to see great times early on because of the weather and because we have focused more on strength training than speed."

Juarez was Clayton State's first male NCAA provisional qualifier last season with his school record 3:54.92 time in the 1500m. Mead thinks he'll need to shave another three seconds off to run at the national meet in May. Besides Juarez, Mead has high hopes on sophomores Adil Berkhedle (Scarborough, Ontario, Canada), Carlos Guyton (Thomasville, Ga.), and Lawrence Kelley (Marietta, Ga.), as well as senior Warren van der Westhuizen (Johannesburg, South Africa) from the Lakers' soccer program. "Adil has the potential to qualify in both the 800m and 1500m," said Mead. "Carlos has worked hard in the 400m, but has the potential in the high jump since he cleared over 6-6 last season. Lawrence is focusing on the 100 and 200, but could be a surprise in the 400m and Warren may make his mark in the javelin."

"It's hard to single anyone out," said Mead. "We've got a good bunch of hard-working, dedicated athletes on both squads. The women have plenty of potential, but at this time we're young."

Sophomore Kim Daniel (Macon, Ga.) leads the women's squad, as she returns as the top runner. Daniel set the women's school record in the 5,000m last season, but has the leg speed to be a serious contender in events ranging from the 800m on up to the 3,000m. Freshman Heather Krehbiel (Peachtree City, Ga.) and junior Penny Tinker (Mesa, Ariz.) will compliment.

"Our women's team is smaller than we had hoped since three off the cross country team elected not to come out for track," said Mead. "We'll still have our largest squad (nine) to date since the basketball season is complete and we pick up Aletha Binion (field events) and April Taylor (sprints)."

Saturday's meet at Oglethorpe will be a combination of open and relay events, starting at 9:45 a.m. with the women's long jump and men's javelin.

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