EUGENE, Ore. – Arkansas State senior thrower Calea Carr closed her collegiate season at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Saturday at historic Hayward Field by earning All-America honors in discus throw with a sixth place finish.

Competing in the first of two flights on the final day at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, Carr had quite the performance. Carr was third after the first round of throws at 49.89m (163-8). A personal-best throw on her second attempt moved her up to first in the flight at 54.28m (178-1), just shy of Julia Agawu’s school record of 54.59m (179-1).

Carr was ranked sixth overall after the second flight wrapped up under heavy rain. The rain subsided and Carr took advantage by breaking the school record with a throw of 54.67m (179-4). A light rain returned for the second round of throws and Carr fouled on her second attempt. Her final throw as a collegian was also a foul, but her school record throw clinched the sixth place finish.

“We are so happy for Calea, it was a great day for her and our program,” said A-State head coach Jim Patchell. “It was awesome to see her throw that well in her final meet as a Red Wolf. She got the school record, First Team All-America honors and she’s the first to do that since Sharika Nelvis for the women’s team. That was a great performance to end on after the rough start we had, but it gives us a great performance to go home with.”

Carr improves upon her 19th place finish in the discus throw a season ago at 49.86m (163-7). This marks the third-consecutive season the A-State women’s throws group has seen an athlete earn All-America honors. Carr’s sixth place finish ties for the third-highest finish by an A-State women’s student-athlete at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

For the latest on the A-State track and field, log onto the team’s Facebook page at Facebook.com/AStateTrackAndField or follow the team on Twitter or Instagram at @AStateTrack.

NCAA Outdoor Championships
Hayward Field | Eugene, Ore.

Wednesday (June 6)
9. Jaylen Bacon – 10.095 | 100m Dash | 2nd Team All-America
15. Cristian Ravar Ladislau – 67.75m/222-3 | Hammer Throw | 2nd Team All-America
18. Jaylen Bacon – 20.73 | 200m Dash
22. Itamar Levi – 17.92m/58-9.50 | Shot Put
23. Elijah Ross – 10.34 | 100m Dash
23. Carter Shell – 7.30m/23-11.50 | Long Jump

Thursday (June 7)
20. Caitland Smith – 11.46 | 200m Dash

Saturday (June 9)
6. Calea Carr – 54.67m/179-4 (school record) | Discus Throw | 1st Team All-America

The post Calea Carr finishes career as All-American in discus throw appeared first on ArkansasSports.Net.

AUSTIN, Texas – Junior discus thrower Calea Carr and junior sprinter Jaylen Bacoh each punched their ticket to Eugene for the NCAA Outdoor Championships to highlight the second of three days at the NCAA West Region Preliminary for student-athletes from the Arkansas State University track and field teams.

Carr finished 11th in the discus throw to clinch her spot in Eugene. She posted a best throw of 53.57m (175-9), a new personal-best, and tied for the second-best throw in program history. Carr also competes at the NCAA West Region Preliminary in shot put tomorrow at 6:00 p.m.

Bacon broke 10.00 seconds in the 100-meter dash to win his heat and punch his ticket to Eugene. He clocked a time of 9.97 seconds to break his own school record. His time ranked second among his peers that will advance to Eugene.

Bacon also ran in the first round of the 200-meter dash on Friday and had an impressive run. He posted the top time among the 48 competitors clocking in at 20.18 seconds to advance to Saturday’s quarterfinal. His time of 20.18 seconds is just shy of Ed Preston’s school record of 20.14 set in 1976.

Shemiah Brooks narrowly missed out on advancing to the quarterfinal in the 100-meter hurdles. She finished 24th overall with a time of 13.51 seconds, but broken out to thousandths of a second, she was just behind the final at-large qualifier by a time of 13.503 to 13.507 seconds.

Michael Carr had his sophomore season come to a close with a tied for 18th place finish in the pole vault, finishing with a clearance of 5.15m (16-10.75). Junior Darragh May closed her season by finishing tied for 32nd with a mark of 1.69m (5-06.50).

Heading into the third and final day of the regional, A-State has three student-athletes qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene. Joining Carr and Bacon is Cristian Ravar Ladislau who finished fifth in the hammer throw. The Red Wolves have five student-athletes competing in four events Saturday.

Athletes who rank among the top 48 in their respective event earned berths into the NCAA West Preliminary Round. Athletes with the top 12 times/marks and the best 12 relay teams at both the East and West prelims will qualify for the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Oregon, June 7-10.

The post Carr and Bacon advance to Eugene appeared first on ArkansasSports.Net.