Men’s Track & Field Heads to NCAA Championships

June 5, 2006

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Tigers Set for NCAA Championships Clemson will begin competition at the 2006 NCAA Outdoor Championships on Wednesday, June 7. The competition will be held at the A.G. Spanos Sports Complex in Sacramento, CA.

Clemson’s first action Wednesday will be the first five events of the decathlon. That will take place at 10:00 AM (Pacific Time). Also on Thursday will be the qualifying round for both the high jump and pole vault, set to be held at 4:15 and 4:45 PM, respectively. The semifinals of both the 4x100m relay and 3000m steeplechase also take place Wednesday.

On Thursday, the decathlon will conclude with the high hurdles, discus throw, pole vault, javelin throw, and 1500m run. Also that day, the first round and semifinals of the 100m dash will take place in the afternoon.

The qualifying round of the triple jump and the finals of the pole vault and high jump will be held on Friday, along with the relay final. Saturday’s action for the Tigers will conclude with the finals of the triple jump, 100m, and steeplechase, should those athletes qualify.

Clemson’s 2006 NCAA Qualifiers Nine Tiger track & field athletes will be making the trip to Sacramento for this week’s NCAA Championships. Clemson has qualified athletes in the 100m, 4x100m relay, 3000m steeplechase, high jump, triple jump, pole vault, and decathlon.

Travis Padgett has qualified in the 100m via his victory at the NCAA East Region Championships. He owns the third-best time this season nationally, but his time was not wind-aided. Padgett also will run third leg with the Tigers’ 4x100m relay team.

The remainder of the 4x100m relay team is Roy Cheney, Corey Brown, and Cowin Mills. The 2006 outdoor meet will mark the second for senior Cheney and first for Brown, a freshman, and Mills, a sophomore. Cheney ran with the 4x400m relay team in 2003. Brown did run the 60m at the NCAA Indoor Championships in February. The team earned an automatic berth after finishing runner-up at the East Regional two weeks ago.

Itay Magidi will be making his third appearance at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. He also was runner-up at regionals in the 3000m steeplechase. Magidi, a 2003 & 2005 All-American in the event, ran a season-best 8:48.37 in the steeplechase in Greensboro, NC last time out.

Jason Bell earned an at-large berth in the triple jump after posting a personal best 51’10” leap at the NCAA East Region Championships. Bell also participated in the 2005 NCAA Outdoor meet.

Adam Linkenauger earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships by virtue of his tie for fourth in the high jump at regionals. He also has competed at the outdoor meet, in 2004.

Mitch Greeley earned an at-large berth in the pole vault. The sophomore, who was an indoor All-American, cleared 17’5″ earlier this season which was a Clemson outdoor record. This will be his first trip to the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

Ryan Koontz, ACC Champion in both the indoor heptathlon and outdoor decathlon, will compete in the decathlon at this year’s meet. This will be his first trip to the NCAA Outdoor meet.

Clemson’s 2006 NCAA Qualifiers

Name             Event           Mark    RankJason Bell       Triple Jump     51'10"  21stCorey Brown      4x100m          39.76   16thRoy Cheney       4x100m          39.76   16thMitch Greele     Pole Vault      17'5"   24thRyan Koontz      Decathlon       7,371   11thAdam Linkenauger High Jump       6'11.75"20thItay Magidi      3000mSC         8:48.37 19thCowin Mills      4x100m          39.76   16thTravis Padgett   100m            10.00   3rd                 4x100m          39.76   16th

Padgett Sets Clemson, ACC, & East Region Record in 100m Dash Clemson freshman sprinter Michael Green in 1993. The previous ACC and East Region best had been 10.06, set by Walter Dix of Florida State in 2005.

Clemson’s NCAA Championships History The Tigers have a rich history in terms of the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Clemson’s team has finished in the top 10 on four occasions, including a fourth-place showing in 2002. Under the watch of Bob Pollock, the Tigers have placed in the top 25 as a team 12 times.

Three Tigers have claimed individual outdoor national titles, including Michael Green who first achieved the honor in 1993. Duane Ross and Shawn Crawford are the other two outdoor national champions for the Tiger program.

Clemson has finished runner-up 13 times in outdoor events, including four times during the 2002 season. Tiger athletes have placed third on nine occasions, most recently in 2000 when Todd Matthews earned bronze in the 110m hurdles.