Though much of the focus this week will be on the hometown Oregon women’s track and field team, plenty of other talented teams are in Eugene for the NCAA Championships. They hail from all over the country, from the sunshine of Florida to the plains of Texas. What follows is a breakdown of Oregon’s top female competitors at Hayward Field this week.

Texas A&M
Ranked No. 1 by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), Texas A&M comes into the NCAA Championships as the prohibitive favorite. The Aggies took home the top prize last year, narrowly edging out Oregon in the process. The task will be a bit more difficult this year, as the Aggie women are forced to
compete on hostile turf.
Texas A&M has already competed once at Hayward Field this year during April’s Pepsi Team Invitational. Oregon took home top honors in that meet, with the Aggies following in second.
In all, the Aggies will send 21 women to Eugene. A quick look at the entry list shows plenty of Texas A&M names with top seeds.
The Aggie women look to dominate the 200-meter dash, with sophomore Jeneba Tarmoh and senior Porscha Lucas claiming the top two seeds. Lucas won the event at last year’s NCAA Outdoor Championships, but Tarmoh has been on a roll lately and earned top honors at the Big 12 Championships.
Tarmoh and Lucas will also compete in the 100-meter dash, along with junior Gabby Mayo and sophomore Dominique Duncan. In the 400-meter dash, junior Jessica Beard tops the list and will look to improve on her second-place finish last year.
LSU
Sporting the nation’s No. 3 ranking, the Lady Tigers are poised to make noise on the sport’s biggest stage.LSU will bring 17 competitors to Eugene and appears determined to win a second national title in three years. With a plethora of depth and talent in a variety of events, the top prize could very well be on the horizon.
Senior Samantha Henry holds the No. 1 overall seed in the 100-meter dash, her time at the East Preliminary Rounds being recorded at a blistering 11.18 seconds. Henry will also compete in the 200-meter dash alongside freshmen Kimberlyn Duncan and Takeia Pinckney.
In the 800-meter run, seniors LaTavia Thomas and Kayann Thompson will look to make noise with the four and five seeds. Thomas and Thompson also anchor the 4×400-meter relay team, which is seeded second behind Oregon.
On the field, meanwhile, sophomore Samia Stokes will compete in the discus throw. Her throw of 177 feet, 11 inches at the East Preliminary Rounds was a personal best, and that momentum could continue right through the NCAA Championships.

Florida State
With the No. 4 ranking in the country, Florida State has proven itself as a force to be reckoned with. In all, eight women qualified to compete in the NCAA Championships, including the red-hot Kimberly Williams. A junior triple jumper and three-time NCAA champion, Williams had a season-best14.03-meter jump in the East Regional Championships, easily qualifying for the NCAA Championships. She will have the No. 1 seed overall.
The 4×100-meter relay team of Candyce McGrone, Marecia Pemberton, Amy Harris and Teona Rodgers also qualified with an overall time of 44.04 seconds. Pemberton, a freshman, will compete in the 100-meter dash as well, while McGrone will try her hand in the 200m.
The Seminoles are hungry for a championship, their last coming in 1984. With a stacked roster filled with talent, this could be their year.
[email protected]