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Four Cavaliers to Compete at NCAA Indoor Championships
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INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.-Junior triple jumper Dallas Rose (Pearland, Texas) and freshman shot putter Nick Vena (Morristown, N.J.) have earned at-large bids to the 2012 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships, the NCAA announced Monday. Rose and Vena join senior All-American triple jumper Marcus Robinson (Richmond, Va.) and junior All-American miler Morgane Gay (Bethesda, Md.) at the national meet, which will be held March 9-10 in Nampa, Idaho.
ESPN3 will stream the meet live on March 9 from 7:30 p.m.-11:45 p.m., and March 10 from 8:00 p.m.-11:15 p.m. A tape delay of the championship will air Sunday, March 18 from 7:30-9:30 p.m., on ESPNU. NCAA.com and broncosports.com will stream what ESPN3 is not covering on Friday (Noon-7:30 p.m.) and Saturday (12:30-8 p.m.). All times are Eastern Standard. Live results will be linked to VirginiaSports.com.
The women’s mile prelims will take place at 7:15 p.m., Friday and the shot put will start soon after at 7:30 p.m. On Saturday, the men’s triple jump begins at 7:30 p.m., while the women’s mile final is scheduled for 8:25 p.m., just before the women’s triple jump competition starts at 8:30 p.m.
Robinson, the two-time defending ACC Champion in the men’s triple jump, will be ranked No. 1 in country going into weekend. He set the ACC indoor and Virginia record with a leap of 16.63m (54’6’75) at the Tyson Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark., on Feb. 11. He successfully defended his conference crown on Feb. 25 with a mark of 16.32m (53’6.5″), his second-best jump ever. Robinson earned second-team All-American honors at the 2011 indoor meet, finishing 11th.
Gay won her first ACC Championship in the women’s mile on Feb. 25 with a time of 4:41.40. She is ranked fifth in the nation with a time of 4:34.38, set on Feb. 11 at the Flotrack Husky Classic in Seattle, Wash. Gay is a four-time All-American and has earned citations in each of the last three seasons, including the 2011 cross country, outdoor (1,500 meters) and indoor (distance medley relay) campaigns.
Rose set a career-best mark in the women’s triple jump (12.98m, 42’7″) at the 2012 ACC Championships, the third-best mark in school history and good enough for a bronze medal. She holds the 16th-best mark in nation.
Vena has broken and re-broken the school record in men’s shot put during his inaugural collegiate season. He earned silver and set the school mark with a distance of 18.84m (61’9.75″) at the ACC Championships and followed that up with a throw of 18.92m (62’1″) at the VT Final Qualifier on March 3 in Blacksburg, Va, that ranks 16th in the country.