5/22/2019 | General
PORTALES, N.M. – Five members of the Eastern New Mexico track and field team are slated to compete at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships this week at Javelina Stadium in Kingsville, Texas from May 23-25.
Danee Bustos, Kandice Miles, Maijah Mathis, and Lateria Slaughter will compete in the women’s 4×100-meter relay prelims, scheduled for Thursday at 4:35 p.m. (CST). Miles and Mathis will return to the track later in the day for the 100-meter dash prelims at 5:55 p.m.
On Friday, Miles and Mathis will be competing in their third event, the 200-meter prelims, at 4:35 p.m. (CST) and Ivar Moinat will run in the 800-meter prelims at 5:20 p.m. If any ENMU athletes qualify for their respective finals, all final events will be held on Saturday.
The women’s 4×100-meter relay team enters the NCAA Championship meet after putting together the best performance in program history at the Lone Star Conference Outdoor Championships in Portales, N.M. The squad broke the ENMU record with a 45.56 to claim the bronze medal and followed it up with a head-to-head win over the nationally fifth-ranked West Texas A&M 4×100-meter team at the WTAMU Last Chance on May 12. The team is making its return to nationals after earning All-American accolades last year with an eighth place finish, crossing the finish line in 45.74 in the 4×100 championship heat at the 2018 NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships in Charlotte, N.C.
Putting together two of the best seasons in program history, Mathis and Miles were also selected to compete in the 100-meter and 200-meter events, becoming the first two women in the history of the program to compete in three events at the NCAA Championships.
Mathis makes her way into the championship meet as the ENMU record holder in the 100-meter dash after setting an 11.71 as well as the second-fastest 200-meter time in program history with a 24.07 at the West Texas A&M Invitational on Apr. 20. The Wellington, Fla. product earned All-LSC Second Team accolades after finishing third in the 100-meter dash, matching her career-best 11.71 while also finishing fourth in the 200-meter with a time of 24.16. Mathis ranks in the top 20 nationally as she enters the championship meet seeded 19th in both events.
During the 2019 campaign, Miles set two of the top individual marks in the ENMU record books. Miles broke her own 200-meter record at the LSC Outdoor Championships when she crossed the line in 23.87 to claim the silver medal in the event. Miles also set the second-fastest 100-meter time in program history at the WTAMU Invitational with an 11.73. Miles set a personal best in the 100-meter event at the LSC Championships when she turned in an 11.60 for second place, but the time did not count toward a school record or NCAA qualifying due to an illegal wind reading. The Houston native holds the 11th seed in the 200-meter event and is seeded 22nd in the 100-meter dash.
Competing in his second national championship meet of 2019, Moinat will be seeking a second All-American accolade in the 800-meter run. Moinat was selected to 800-meter championship field after setting the 17th fastest time in Division II and the second fastest time in ENMU history with a 1:51.03 at the West Texas A&M Classic & Multi on Apr. 6. At the LSC Championships, Moinat earned the silver medal in the 800-meter event after crossing the finish line in 1:52.07. The Amsterdam, Netherlands product will be seeking a second All-American accolade in 2019 as he placed seventh in the 800-meter championship event with a time of 1:51.25 at the NCAA Division II Indoor Championships in Pittsburg, Kan. on Mar. 9, becoming the 23rd All-American in the history of the program and the 11th indoor All-American at ENMU.
