The track and field train is about to leave the station for the NCAA Championships and a few stragglers might be able to jump on board Thursday night at Tom Black Track. The University of Tennessee's annual Gatorade Track Classic has been reformatted as the Gatorade Twilight Meet. N.C. The Vols and Lady Vols each have several athletes on the bubble, within reach of a qualifying mark. They'll be joined tonight by a host of post-collegians trying to hit qualifying standards for the U.S. Olympic Trials later this summer.
Admission is free.
Rocky Danners ranks 16th on the NCAA performance list in the pole vault, but would like to improve his positioning tonight. Tyler Garrett ranks 23rd in the shot put and needs to improve his mark to earn a bid. Marcus Tanner needs a big effort in the 1,500 tonight to have a chance at running in Durham. Sophomore Kevin Thompson and senior Pat Buckheit are attempting to complete their second decathlon in a week and need an improvement on their SEC meet scores. Sumpter still has an outside chance in the 200 meters.