On Saturday, the Mississippi State track and field team will take one more step to prepare for the SEC championship and the NCAA championship as they host the Bulldogs Invitational as a part of Super Bulldog Weekend festivities. Women’s track head coach Al Schmidt said the meet will be key in letting the team know where it needs to improve before the SEC championship meet.
“Tournament related meets are the only way we can score for the SEC Championship, which is in the middle of May,” Schmidt said.
This meet, as well as the others, gives the team members a chance to get ready, fitter, faster and able to jump higher and longer distances. This invitational also gives the track and field team a chance to qualify for the SEC.
“We have one female and nine guys that are already NCAA qualified,” Schmidt said.
How well the team does at its meets, as far as the primary event goes, will determine a lot.
“Obviously our goal for Saturday is to win the meet, and it has been a while since we lost a home meet,” Schmidt said.
Another goal for the track and field team is to be in the top 20. Another important meet on the horizon is the Texas Relays, which will be held on April 2-5 in Austin, Texas. This is the second or third largest meet for the team, from Bulldogs have taken home many championships and relays.
Another very important meet for the team is the Penn Relays, which will be held April 25-26 in Philadelphia, Pa. This is the largest meet of the season.
“Our goal is to win home track meets,” Schmidt said. “This weekend Alcorn, Mississippi Valley, Louisiana Tech, Southeastern Missouri and a lot of in state teams will be here.” Last weekend at the 12th annual Jace LaCoste Invitational, held at Mississippi State, there were some strong performances, and MSU dominated the field.
Golden Coachman’s 800-meter run of 1:49:19 and Emanuel Mayers 400-meter hurdles mark of 52:05 were two high points for the day for the Bulldogs.
Ed Wesela’s throws broke personal records, and Ben Blakenship’s 3,000-meter run was also a personal best of 8:31:74.
Coachman has been a force on the MSU team this year, something that Schmidt was quick to note.
“Golden Coachman is leading the SEC in the 800-meter run time-wise,” Schmidt said.
Coachman ranked fourth in the NCAA last year. He is on the All-American United States team and has a strong shot to make the Olympic team.
In the 100-meter dash, Bridgett Rose gathered the individual crown with a personal-best time of 11:83. She also finished a close second in the 200-meter dash, crossing the line in 24:35. Rose collected her second regional qualifying mark of the season with her 13:80 finish in the 100-meter hurdles, where she also took home first place.
Schmidt said there were a few runners on the women’s team that should qualify in the invitational this weekend.
“We are just trying to get ready,” Schmidt said. “The Texas Relay is such a big meet.”
Men’s head coach Steve Dudley said he thinks the team performance as a whole will be strong this weekend.
“I don’t look for certain team members to do well,” Dudley said. “I look for the best performance out of all of them. Every meet that we get qualifiers is good, but I don’t look for individuals. I just hope the whole team is doing what it is supposed to be doing and doing well.