MEET PREVIEW: 2018 NCAA DII Outdoor T&F Championships

NEW ORLEANS – At the conclusion of the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships, that are set for May 24-26 in Charlotte, North Carolina, a slew of new athletes will etch their names into history by winning national championships.

However, there are a select few that will be able to build on an already impressive career. A total of eight men and seven women have an opportunity to repeat as champions after winning titles a season ago.

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NATIONAL TEAM RANKINGS: Men | Women

While the meet will be chock full of exciting action in every event, let’s dive into the 15 athletes who are hoping to win their second-straight at the Irwin Belk Complex this weekend.

Myles Pringle of Ashland is a multi-talented athlete who is bound to score in multiple events this weekend. However, after notching a 45.77 in the 400 a season ago to take home the title, he’ll look to do that again this weekend. He has an incredibly solid chance to do just that, as he will enter the meet with the top-time in NCAA Division II this season at 45.50, looking to become the first to repeat in the event since Josh Scott did so for Saint Augustine’s in 2009 and 2010. Pringle is also entered in the 200 and high jump, and should take part in the Eagles’ 4×400 relay squad.

Fort Hays State’s Decano Cronin quietly put together a sound season on the track after winning the 800 title last year. He will enter the weekend with the second-best 800 time this year at 1:47.98, and he won all but one 800 competition this season. Cronin would become the 11th men’s athlete to repeat in the 800 should he win.

David Ribich set the NCAA Division II 1500 record this year at the Bryan Clay Invitational, posting an astounding time of 3:37.35. The product from Western Oregon will look to become the ninth men’s athlete to repeat in the 1500.

Juan Scott of Central (Ohio) was third in the 110 hurdles this season, posting a time of 13.83, but he’s capable of taking home a title, as evidenced from his work a season ago. Should he win again, he would become the first men’s athlete to repeat in the 110 hurdles since Decosma Wright did so for Lincoln (Mo.) in 2006 and 2007.

Cervantes Jackson of Albany State (Ga.) won the high jump and triple jump a season ago, in addition to placing fourth in the long jump. However, he’s only entered into the high jump and long jump this season. Jackson tied for the sixth-best high jump mark in NCAA Division II this year at 2.14m (7-0¼) where he’ll look to become the first repeat winner in the event since Jeron Robinson of Texas A&M-Kingsville won three-in-a-row from 2013-15.

Northwest Nazarene’s Payton Lewis would be the first repeat winner in the pole vault since Ryan Brown accomplished the feat in 2010 and 2011. Lewis will have his work cut out for him, as he enters the meet tied for 17th on the NCAA Division II Descending Order List with a leap of 5.05m (16-6¾).

Angelo State’s Nils Fischer was dominant in the javelin this year, notching the third-best mark in the event in NCAA Division II history with a throw of 76.48m (250-11). Should he repeat in the event, he would be the first to do so since Nick Howe of UC San Diego back in 2010 and 2011.

Florian Obst of Texas A&M-Commerce scored 7,576 to win the decathlon title a season ago, but bettered that mark this year during the regular season with an NCAA Division II-leading total of 7,681.

Dianna Johnson from Adams State was all over the place a year ago, scoring in three events and winning the 100. The junior will head to Charlotte with the fastest 100-meter time this season at 11.23, which sits a tenth of a second faster than anyone else this season. She would become the eighth woman to repeat in the 100 meters.

Alicja Konieczek of Western State is the lone athlete in the entire NCAA Division II field that is hoping to repeat in two events. A season ago, the native of Poland won the 5000 and steeplechase. She will enter the weekend atop the Descending Order List in the steeplechase, but sits third in the 5000 this season. The last woman to go back-to-back in both the 5000 and steeplechase in the same years was Alicia Nelson of Adams State in 2013 and 2014.

In the 100 hurdles, Janelle Perry of Ursuline (Ohio) would become the first woman to repeat in the event since Shermaine Williams of Johnson C. Smith won three-consecutive titles from 2009-11. Perry led the nation this year with a time of 13.23.

Missouri Southern’s Emily Presley has the unique distinction of being the only athlete at the meet who will look for her third-consecutive title in a single event. Presley has won the last two pole vault titles and would become the first to win three-straight should she win this weekend. Her mark of 4.26m (13-11¾) is the 11th-best mark in NCAA Division II outdoor history.

Fatim Affessi of West Texas A&M won the title in the long jump last season and could repeat this year, as she sits tied for second on the Descending Order List heading into the meet. However, she also leads NCAA Division II in the triple jump this season, and she could become the first woman to double up in those two events since Kwonya Ferguson did so in 2007.

Michaela Dendinger of Wayne State (Neb.) could become the first woman to repeat in the shot put since Adriane Blewitt in the early 2000s, but her presence could also be felt in other areas.  The senior is also ranked in the top-six in the nation in the discus and hammer throw.

Finally, West Texas A&M’s Norma Cunigan could become the first woman since Cecilia Barnes to win consecutive discus titles, as she captured the championship last season. Cunigan will enter the meet in Charlotte ranked seventh in the nation this season.