Roanoke's Yerkes, 4x100 Team Qualify for Finals

BEREA, Ohio --- It didn't take long for ODAC athletes to make their mark at the NCAA Division III Track & Field Championships.  On day one, Bridgewater College pole vaulter Christina Rhodes and Lynchburg College distance runner Ricky Flynn secured All-America honors at George Finnie Stadium on the campus of Baldwin-Wallace College.

For Rhodes, the award marks the second major honor in as many days.  The Eagles' junior earned the NCAA Elite 88 Award for women's track at Wednesday's championship banquet.  The accolade recognizes the student-athlete with the highest grade point average at the finals of each of the NCAA's 88 championship events.  Rhodes owns a 4.0 GPA as a liberal studies major.

In Thursday's opening day of competition, Rhodes finished in a tie for sixth in the pole vault after clearing 3.73 meters (12'2.75").  Four of the event's six competitors cleared that same distance, but Rhodes and Richard Stockton College's Rachel Joseph were tabbed for sixth place based on the fewest number of failed attempts in the competition.

Flynn added to a résumé that already includes the 2009 NCAA Division III Cross Country national title and five other All-America awards.  He made it an even half-dozen after placing fourth in the 10,000-meter run with a time of 30:27.55, under 12-seconds behind the winner.  Flynn has a chance at one more All-America prize as he is slated to compete in 5,000-meter run late in the afternoon on Saturday.

A few other ODAC athletes put themselves in prime position for more awards after the opening day.  Roanoke College standout Robin Yerkes qualified for the finals in the 200-meter dash.  She won the event's first heat (of three) with a time of 24.21 seconds.  That time not only set a new ODAC record (which she already owned at 24.25), but surpassed the NCAA Division III's season-best mark...that is, until the later heats in the race.  Yerkes goes into the finals with the third-best time so far, following Methodist College's Ruby Blackwell (24.05) and Illinois Wesleyan University's Amanda LaRocca (24.11).  The 200-meter finals are set for Saturday afternoon.

Yerkes and teammates Jaleesa Osborne, Carmen Graves and Jazamine Stallings will compete in the 4x100-meter relay finals on Saturday.  The Maroons posted a time of  47.44 seconds to qualify as the eighth and final team to square off for the national title.  Wartburg College ran the day's top time at 46.22 seconds.

Osborne also competed in the long jump competition on Thursday.  Her best leap of 5.53 meters (18'1.75") finished 12th in preliminaries, three spots and 0.06 meters outside the top nine that qualified for the finals.

Bridgewater senior Courtney Hartman currently stands second in the heptathlon after four events with 2,959 points, 70 points behind Emma Dewart from Ithaca College.  Hartman started the day with a fifth place showing in the 100-meter hurdles (15.24; 810 pts.).  She went on to place 12th in the high jump (1.55-meters; 678 pts.) before rebounding with a third place finish in the shot put (10.95 meters; 592 pts.).  She capped her day by winning the 200-meter dash with a time of 25.08 seconds for 879 points.  The final three events of the heptathlon are schedule for Friday afternoon.

For a look at complete results, visit the championship website at www.bw.edu/athletics/10tracknationals.  You'll also be able to access links to live results from that website, as well as from www.raceberryjam.com.