JONESBORO, Ark. (2/8/24) – Arkansas State track and field will be scattered across three meets Friday and Saturday, representing the final tune-ups ahead of the Sun Belt Conference Championships.

Several jumpers will compete in Friday’s Samford Invitational in Birmingham, Ala., while a handful of distance runners travel to Boston for the two-day David Hemery Valentine Invite. The rest of the squad is slated to compete Friday and Saturday at the Music City Challenge hosted by Vanderbilt.

Competition in Beantown will be streamed live on FloSports (subscription required), while the Music City Challenge will be broadcasted by SEC Network Plus.

NOTABLES:

1.     ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: For the third week in a row, at least one Arkansas State athlete earned Sun Belt Conference weekly honors. Willem Coertzen garnered the league’s Men’s Field Athlete of the Week award after a career-best shot put series at the New Mexico Collegiate Classic last week.

2.     QUALIFYING POSITION: A pair of Arkansas State athletes are currently ranked among the top 16 in their respective events, putting them in position to qualify for the 2024 NCAA Indoor Championships. Bradley Jelmert ranks second in the pole vault, while Colby Eddowes is ninth in the heptathlon (5,821).   

3.     CONFERENCE LEADERS: Arkansas State leads the Sun Belt Conference in multiple events enter the final week of pre-conference competition. On the men’s side, Red Wolves hold the top spot in the 800 meters (Hannes Fahl – 1:48.52), mile (Fahl – 4:06.87), men’s 5000 meters (Jacob Pyeatt – 14:14.63), pole vault (Bradley Jelmert – 5.72m/18-9.25), shot put (Willem Coertzen – 17.94m/58-10.25) and heptathlon (Colby Eddowes – 5,821). Cheyenne Melvin tops the women’s 800 meters (2:07.90), while Elizabeth Martin (5000 meters – 17:06.59), Carly Pujol (pole vault – 3.93m/12-10.75) and Michelle Ogbemudia (weight throw – 20.73m/68-0.25) also lead their respective events.

4.     BRADLEY AMONG THE BEST: Bradley Jelmert is riding a four-meet unbeaten streak into the Samford Invitational. His winning height of 5.55m (18-2.5) out in New Mexico was the No. 2 mark of the week among collegians last week.

5.     #EVENTSQUAD RANKINGS: The Scarlet and Black was well-represented on the USTFCCCA’s second #EventSquad rankings of the season. The men’s 60-meter hurdles group was ranked 11th, with shot put and pole vault ranking 16^th and 22^nd, respectively. A-State’s women’s shot put squad ranks 15^th nationally, while the pole vault corps stands 19^th.   

NEXT UP

After this weekend, A-State shifts its sights towards the Sun Belt Conference Indoor Championships, held Feb. 19-20 in Birmingham, Ala. The Red Wolves have swept the last four indoor championships dating back to 2020. A-State has won 11 indoor men’s titles and eight women’s crowns.

SOCIAL MEDIA

For the latest on the A-State track and field and cross country programs, follow @AStateTrack on Twitter and @astatetfxc on Instagram, while also liking the team’s Facebook page at Facebook.com/AStateTrackAndField.