Ole Miss track during the 2014 Ole Miss Open on Saturday, March 22, 2014 in Oxford, Miss. (Photo/Ignacio Murillo)
Less than a week after Ole Miss had three first team All-American performances at the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships, the Rebels move out into the elements for the outdoor season opener at the John Mitchell Alabama Relays in Tuscaloosa, Thursday-Saturday.
The Alabama Relays get underway Thursday with the men’s and women’s hammer throw and women’s javelin, while the majority of events occur Friday evening and all day Saturday.
Among the men’s athletes to watch for Ole Miss this weekend are outdoor hammer throw school record holder Nathan Loe, 400-meter runners Morgan and Sherrer, and high jumpers Adam Aguirre and Brandon Greene.
The women will feature freshman Shannon Ray among a corps of young sprinters, while Kierra White, Lanae Newsome, Brittany Kelly and Shari Russell look to make their mark in the jumps. The 100-meter hurdles could be another good event for the Rebels with Taryn Hartfield and Kelly.
Ole Miss will be without last year’s outdoor stars, NCAA pole vault champion Sam Kendricks, who went pro after his junior season, and SEC Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year Ricky Robertson, who graduated. However, head coach Brian O’Neal brings back many of the pieces that helped the Rebel men capture their best SEC outdoor finish since 1984.
Ole Miss finished fifth in the SEC and 24th in the NCAA on the men’s side last outdoor season. The women were 14th at the SEC outdoor meet.
After the Alabama Relays, the Rebels will travel to Atlanta (Yellow Jacket Invitational) and Auburn (Tiger Track Classic) the next two weekends. Other outdoor meets of interest include the Alabama-Mississippi Border War in Starkville (April 10) and the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa (April 23-25).
