East Tennessee State University’s track and field teams will compete at the Catamount Classic in Cullowhee, North Carolina, according to an April 23 announcement. The event, which serves as the final full-squad meet before the Southern Conference Outdoor Championships, has been condensed from two days to one due to weather concerns. Field events are set to begin Friday at 10:00 a.m., with track events starting at 3:00 p.m.
The Catamount Classic is important for ETSU athletes as it takes place at the same venue where the upcoming conference championships will be held. This gives team members an opportunity to familiarize themselves with the competition setting ahead of a major event.
Both men’s and women’s teams have entered large groups of athletes for this meet. A standout sophomore sprinter leads the Southern Conference in three sprint events—the 100 meters, 200 meters, and 400 meters—and recently set a school record in the 400 meters with a time of 53.76 seconds at last week’s Wake Forest Invitational. She is scheduled to compete only in the 100-meter dash this weekend, where she currently holds the top conference time of 11.55 seconds.
Another athlete is entered in both discus and hammer throw events; she ranks third in SoCon discus (41.62m) and fourth in hammer throw (46.44m), making her a medal contender for both disciplines.
On the men’s side, one competitor will run both short sprints aiming to improve his current sixth- and fifth-place conference rankings in those races. Freshman talent will participate again after posting a fourth-best SoCon time of 55.01 seconds last week in the men’s hurdles event. Another team member sits fourth overall among pole vaulters (4.51m) going into this weekend’s contest.
Team captain Fulford returns from injury for his first appearance of the season on Friday; he is scheduled to compete across five different disciplines including sprints, throws, and pole vaulting.
Further details about ETSU track and field can be found by visiting ETSUBucs.com.
