Princeton University
NCAA Championships
Players Mentioned
Harris and Kelly Compete at NCAA Championships Saturday
March 08, 2017 | Men's Track and Field, Women's Track and Field
USTFCCA Championship Central l Aggies Microsite
Live Results l  ESPN3
Start Lists: Pole Vault l Weight Throw
PRINCETON, N.J. (3/9/17) - Senior Allison Harris and sophomore Adam Kelly will both compete in field events at the 2017 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championship in Texas this weekend.
Harris will compete in the pole vault on Saturday, March 11 at 4 p.m. (local time) at Gilliam Indoor Track on the campus of Texas A&M. The progression will run 4.05, 4.20, 4.30, 4.40 then 5 cm. A five-alive format will take place until there are fewer than nine.
Kelly's event, the weight throw is Saturday, March 11 at 3 p.m. (local time). It will be one single flight with the top nine advancing for three more throws.ESPN3 will be streaming the meet beginning at 3:55 p.m. (local time), however as previous coverage has shown, not all field events may be covered.
Harris qualified for the event with a 4.27 (14-0) mark this season which set both the Princeton and Ivy League record. This past Monday she was named the USTFCCCA Mid-Atlantic Regional Field Athlete of the Year. A three-time Ivy League Heps champion in the event, this is Harris' first time competing at the NCAA Championships, indoor or outdoor. She is the second Tiger to compete in the pole vault, but the first to do so indoors. Chelo Canino '04 competed in the outdoor championships in 2004 finishing in sixth place with a 4.10 (13-5.50).
Six of the 16 that competed last year return including champion Lexi Weeks (Arkansas). Weeks went on to to win another title in the outdoor pole vault, where seven of these 16 vaulters competed. Other competitors Harris will face is Tori Weeks (Arkansas) who was sixth in 2016, Elizabeth Quick (Washington) who placed ninth, Annie Rhodes (Baylor) who was 10th and Kally Long (Texas) who was 12th. Lexi Weeks is again the favorite as she leads the nation with a 4.60, while twin sister Tori is second with a 4.57. Harris' 4.27 ranks her 11th out of the 16.
Kelly is competing in his second NCAA Championships, after making the outdoor championship in the hammer throw as a freshman. This is his first time reaching the indoor championship in the weight. He has the seventh-best throw in the nation at 22.62 (74-2.50), which is the second best throw in program history and the third best throw all-time in Ivy League history. Kelly is the fifth Tiger to compete in the final, as he joins Peter Seley (1990), Witek Grzymala-Busse (1993, 94, 95), Josh McCaughey (2001-15th, 2002-15th) and Alex Pessala (2009-10th)
The top eight in the weight throw last year were all seniors, leaving the race wide open this year. Returning competitors include Rudy Winkler (Cornell) who was 10th in 2016, and Josh Davis (NC State) who was 16th. Kelly will see familiar faces in three other competitors that were also in the hammer throw final: Joseph Ellis (Michigan), Alex Poursanidis (Georgia) and Elisa Hakansson (Alabama). Johnnie Jackson (LSU) has the best throw in the country at 23.56, while Gleb Dudarev (Kansas) has thrown 23.44 for the second-best.