Sprinter Justin Meredith and distance runner Jessica Shaw will represent Albion College in the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Waverly, Iowa next week.
Meredith, a senior who prepped at Groves High School, will compete in the 100-meter dash. The Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association in the event, established a qualifying time of 10.64 seconds during the Polar Bear Invitational in April.
Meredith will be making his second appearance in the NCAA Championship. He competed in the 100 and 200-meter events in 2014.
Shaw, a junior from Allegan, Mich., achieved the 10th fastest time of the runners in the field for the 10,000 meters when completed an early April race in St. Louis in 35:45.91. Shaw is believed to be one of the first Albion women to advance to the NCAA Championship in an event on the exclusively on the track. Kristin Nelson, the last woman to represent Albion in the NCAA Championship, competed in the heptathlon.
Shaw is no stranger to competing on the national stage, however. She advanced as an individual for the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships in each of the last two seasons.
Shaw will take to the track for her race Thursday evening, while Meredith will run in a preliminary heat of the 100 meters on Friday.
"I know Justin and Jessica are excited for the opportunity to compete in the NCAA Championship and they will compete well," Albion Head Coach Lance Coleman said. "Both are seeded in places to make it to the finals if they compete well.
"Justin is going to the NCAA Championship for the second time and he won't leave anything behind. He will go for broke," Coleman said. "Jessica is excited to show what she can do for Albion."
Link to the NCAA Championship schedule of events
