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Junior Melissa Bates will run the 200m and anchor both relays at the NCAA West prelims.
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May 26, 2010
Complete West Preliminary Notes (PDF) 
Championship Central | Start Lists | Live Results
Live Video: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3
2010 NCAA West Preliminary Round of Championship
Thursday, May 27 - Saturday, May 29
Mike A. Myers Track and Soccer Stadium // Austin, Texas
The Meet
The No. 22 Illinois women's track & field team will send 16 student-athletes, including both relays, to the NCAA Preliminary Round of Championship at the University of Texas in Austin from May 27-29. This season, the NCAA switched post-season formats for the outdoor track championships going from four regional sites to East and West preliminary round sites. The East NCAA Preliminary Rounds will be hosted by North Carolina A&T in Greensboro, N.C. A full travel roster and schedule of Illini entries can be found in the above PDF.
Each preliminary round site will host the top 48 declared athletes -- or 24 relay teams -- in each event, with the exception of the heptathlon. The preliminary round will serve as the first two rounds of competition for the NCAA championships, narrowing the field in each event to 12 from each region. The top 12 performers from each preliminary round site will then advance to compete at the 2010 NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Ore., June 9-12. Detailed qualification procedures can be found in the above PDF.
Heading into the championships, Illinois is among the top 10 in six different events. Senior Aja Evans owns the top spot in the shot put while fellow senior Angela Bizzarri comes in ranked second in the 5,000m. Junior Tamika Robinson is the fifth seed in the 100m hurdles, while the 4x400m and 4x100m relays rank sixth and seventh, respectively. Sophomore Latoya Griffith is also among the region's best, holding the eighth seed in the 400m hurdles.
Coverage
Live results and video will be available during all three days of the meet and linked on www.fightingillini.com.
Big Ten Outdoor Championships Recap
After winning a pair of Big Ten titles at the indoor championships, senior Angela Bizzarri duplicated the feat on at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships. The three-time national champion broke her own school record in a thrilling 1,500m photo-finish victory before defending her title in the 5,000m. As a team, the Orange and Blue wrapped up the conference championships in fifth place with 87 points at Indiana's Robert C. Haugh Complex. Seniors Alecia Beckford-Stewart (heptathlon) and Aja Evans (shot put), junior Tamika Robinson (100m hurdles) and the 4x100m relay of junior Cheria Morgan, sophomore Ashley Kelly, freshman Kayla Smith and Robinson each notched runner-up finishes at Indiana's Robert C. Haugh Complex.
Illini Athletes to Watch:
Angela Bizzarri, Distance (Sr., Mason, Ohio)
Season Highlights: Ranked second in the nation in the 5,000m behind only Iowa State's Lisa Koll ... Big Ten Track Athlete of the Year ... Won a pair of Big Ten titles in Indiana at the conference championships, including a thrilling win by .01 seconds in the 1,500m and a victory in the 5,000m for the second straight year ... Broke her own school record in the 1,500m victory with a time of 4:15.42 ... Clocked a time of 15:37.21 in the 5,000m at Stanford's Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational and finished sixth overall in a loaded field, trailing Olympians Shannon Rowbury, Shalane Flanagan and Amy Begley, plus Koll and Canada's Nicole Edwards ... Earned Big Ten Track Athlete of the Week honors on May 5 following her debut in the 5,000m ... Her mark was just four seconds shy of her own school record (15:33.02) in the 5,000m, which she set last year at the USA Championships ... Captured her third national title in the indoor 3,000m, where she edged the favorite Koll down the final stretch ... Picked up a pair of indoor Big Ten titles at Penn State, taking home the 3,000m and 5,000m crowns.
Career Accolades: Three-time national champion: outdoor 5,000m in 2009, cross country title in 2009 and indoor 3,000m in 2010 ... Nine-time All-American between cross country and track and field ... Five-time Big Ten champion ... 2009 USTFCCCA National Cross Country Athlete of the Year and Honda Sports Award winner in cross country ... 2009 AAU Sullivan Award finalist, given to the nation's top amateur athlete ... Owns seven school records.
5,000m - Personal-Best: 15:33.02 (6/26/09) // Season-Best: 15:37.21 (5/1/10)
Aja Evans, Throws (Sr., Chicago, Ill.)
Ranked first in the west region and third in the nation in the shot put with a season-best throw of 55-9 (16.99m) ... Placed second at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships in the shot put with a mark of 55-0 1/4 (16.77m) ... Went undefeated in the event during the regular season, taking the top spot at all five meets ... Was named Big Ten Field Athlete of the Week three straight times from April 7 to April 21 and has eclipsed the 55-feet mark in five of her six meets ... Is the Big Ten Championships and school record-holder in the shot put for both indoors and outdoors, setting the indoor mark of 56-0 1/2 (17.08m) this past February at Penn State and the outdoor mark of 55-10 1/2 (17.03m) in 2008 at the Illinois Track Stadium ... Four-time All-American in the shot put, including her third straight indoor laurel this year and first career outdoor honor at last season's NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Shot Put - Personal-Best: 55-10 1/2; 17.03m (5/17/08) // Season-Best: 55-9; 16.99m (4/17/10)
Tamika Robinson, Hurdles / Sprints (Jr., Chicago, Ill.)
Boasts the fifth-fastest 100m-hurdle time in the west region and 13th-quickest in the NCAA ... Tallied a runner-up finish in the 100m hurdles at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships with a time of 13.29 ... Won six individual titles during the regular season and reset her personal best in the 100m hurdles at the SeaRay Relays with a time of 13.18 ... Also will lead off the 4x100m relay, which placed second at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships and turned in the seventh-fastest time (44.64) in the nation at the LSU Alumni Gold Invitational.
100m Hurdles - Personal-Best: 13.18 (4/10/10)
• 4x100m Relay (Tamika Robinson, Ashley Kelly, Kayla Smith, Melissa Bates)
Seeded seventh in the west region and 27th in the nation with its season-best time of 44.64 from the LSU Alumni Gold Invitational ... Robinson, who usually anchors the relay, will lead off this weekend in place of Cheria Morgan and Melissa Bates will run as anchor for the first time this season ... Earned a runner-up finish at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships, placing second behind Penn State with a time of 44.89 ... Picked up three victories on the year at the Mike Poehlein Invitational (45.81), the SeaRay Relays (45.15) and the Illinois Twilight (45.12).
4x100m - Season-Best: 44.64 (4/17/10)
• 4x400m Relay (Ryisha Boyd, Ashley Kelly, Latoya Griffith, Melissa Bates)
Holds the six seed in the region with a season-best time of 3:34.25 from the Drake Relays, which also ranks 16th in the nation ... Placed third at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships with a mark of 3:37.39 ... The quartet of Boyd, Kelly, Griffith and Bates also picked up the squad's only victory of the season at the SeaRay Relays with a time of 3:35.90 ... Last year's squad advanced to nationals from the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships.
4x400m - Season-Best: 3:34.25 (4/24/10)
Latoya Griffith, Hurdles (So., St. Andrews, Barbados)
Holds the eighth seed in the 400m hurdles in the west region and 24th-fastest time in the NCAA, which she ran at the Illinois Twilight (58.11) ... Placed third at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships in the event for the second straight year ... Won three individual titles during the season in the 400m hurdles, including a victory at the Illinois Twilight, the squad's lone home event of the season ... Also will run the third leg of the 4x400m relay ... Took third in the event at last year's NCAA Mideast Regional Championships with a personal-best time of 57.87, which advanced her to nationals.
400m Hurdles - Personal-Best: 57.87 (5/29/09) // Season-Best: 58.11 (4/30/10)
Ashley Kelly, Sprints (So., Tortola, British Virgin Islands)
Seeded 13th in the west region and ranked 26th in the country in the 400m ... Placed third in the 400m at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships with a personal-best time of 53.07 ... Also runs the second leg of both the 4x100m and 4x400m relays and ranks among the top four in her other two events.
400m - Personal-Best: 53.55 (4/17/10)
Chantelle Groenewoud, Distance (Jr., N. Vancouver, B.C.)
Ranked 14th in the west region and 25th in the nation in the 3,000m steeplechase ... Placed fourth in the 3,000m steeplechase at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships for the second consecutive season ... Finished fourth in the event at last year's NCAA Mideast Regional Championships, which advanced her to nationals where she ran a personal-best time of 10:17.37.
3,000m Steeplechase - Personal-Best: 10:17.37 (6/10/09) // Season-Best: 10:23.29 (5/14/10)
Qualifying Procedure for First Round and Final Championship Meet
100-Meters, 100-Meter Hurdles, 200-Meters, 400-Meters, 400-Meter Hurdles
Two rounds will be contested, a first round and a quarterfinal.
# of competitors: 48
# of 1st round heats: 6
Advancing to the quarterfinal round (24): Top 3 from each heat plus next 6 fastest times
The quarterfinal will consist of three heats. Twelve, the top three from each quarterfinal heat plus the next best three times, after tie breaking, will qualify from the quarterfinal round to the Final Championship Meet in Oregon.
1,500-Meters
Two rounds will be contested, a preliminary and a quarterfinal.
# of competitors: 48
# of 1st round heats: 4
Advancing to the quarterfinal round (24): Top 5 from each heat plus next 4 fastest times
The quarter-final will consist of two heats. Twelve, the top five from each quarterfinal heat plus the next best two times, after tie breaking, will qualify from the quarter final round to the Final Championship Meet in Oregon.
3,000-Meter Steeplechase
One round, a quarterfinal, will be contested.
# of competitors: 48
# of 1st round heats: 3
Advancing to the Final Championship Meet (12): Top 3 from each heat plus next 3 fastest times
Twelve, after tie breaking, will qualify from the quarterfinal to the Final Championship Meet in Oregon.
5,000-Meters
One round, a semifinal, will be contested.
# of competitors: 48
# of 1st round heats: 2
Advancing to the Final Championship Meet (12): Top 5 from each heat plus next 2 fastest times
Twelve, after tie breaking, will qualify from the semi-final to the Final Championship Meet in Oregon.
10,000-Meters
One round, a semifinal run as a single race, will be contested. Twelve, after tie breaking, will qualify from the semifinal to the Final Championship Meet in Oregon.
4x100-Meter Relay and 4x400-Meter Relay
One round, a quarterfinal, will be contested.
# of teams: 24
# of 1st round heats: 3
Advancing to the Final Championship Meet (12): Top 3 from each heat plus next 3 fastest times
Twelve, the top three from each quarterfinal heat plus the next best three times, after tie breaking, will qualify from the quarterfinal round to the Final Championship Meet in Oregon.
Long Jump and Shot Put
A single qualifying competition with one check-in, consisting of a round of three preliminary attempts followed by a round of three final attempts, will be contested. There is no automatic qualifying mark. The 16 best marks, after tie breaking, will qualify from the first round of three preliminary attempts to the final round of three attempts. The 12 best marks, after tie breaking, will qualify from each Preliminary Round site to the Final Championship Meet in Oregon.
High Jump
A qualifying competition will be contested. There is no automatic qualifying mark. Twelve, based on performance after tie breaking and possibly a jump-off, will qualify from the Preliminary Round competition to the Final Championship Meet in Oregon.
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