Wednesday, May 06, 2009

MACON, Ga. - In her final competition before the Atlantic Sun Championships, Belmont’s Lynette Rives earned an NCAA Regional qualifying mark in the 200-meter dash to earn the Outdoor Track Athlete of the Week award, the conference office announced on Wednesday.

Rives, a senior biology major, recorded a trio of top-three finishes over the weekend at the Mississippi Open. In the 200-meter dash, she notched an NCAA Regional qualifying mark of 23.79. She also grabbed third place in the 100 meters with a time of 11.76. The Clarksville, Tenn., native completed the day as the final leg of the 4x100m relay team that was just over two-hundredths of a second away from qualifying for Regionals. Rives currently owns the fastest time in the Atlantic Sun in the 100 and second-fastest time in the 200.

The Bruins will take this weekend off in preparation for the A-Sun Championships, contested at UNF on May 15 and 16.

The Atlantic Sun Conference is an 11-member league committed to Building Winners for Life. The A-Sun stands for achievement with integrity in both the academic and athletic arenas, with a focus on the balance between the two for our student-athletes. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun boasts six of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun includes a blend of the most prestigious and dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.

Other Top Performers

Heidi Dahl, ETSU (Sr. - Distance - Orem, Utah - Music) – The senior distance runner set a school record in the 1500 meters at the 2009 Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational. Dahl, who ran a regional qualifying time of 4:23.70 last time out, took five seconds off that time on Saturday evening and broke Catherine Berry’s school record in the event. The Orem, Utah native finished fifth in her section two race with a time of 4:18.69 and bettered Berry’s time by more than three seconds.

Natasha Harvey, Jacksonville (Sr. - Combined - West Haven, Conn. - Exercise Science) – Senior Natasha Harvey continued her hot streak by winning four events, including posting three NCAA regional marks in strong head winds, to lead the JU track & field team past North Florida at the inaugural JU-UNF Duals on April 30. Harvey won the long jump (20-6.5, 6.26m) and the 200-meter (23.85). She also combined with sophomore Danielle Davenport, Louise Kiernan and Unique Singleton to take first in the 4x100-meter relay with a regional qualifying time of 45.33. Harvey placed first in the triple jump with a leap of 39-11.25 (12.17m) to complete the day.