Ace Hunt
GoSycamores.com
TERRE
HAUTE, Ind. ? Indiana State men's track and field head coach John
McNichols announced earlier today (June 22) the signing of six athletes to
national letters of intent.
The list of those signed includes: Xavier Carr (Fort Wayne,
Ind./Harding HS); Dexter Childress (Ferdinand, Ind./Forest
Park HS); Al Escalera (Lafayette, Ind./McCutcheon HS); Maurice
Lyke (Country Club Hills,Ill./Hillcrest HS); Corey Olive (St. Leon, Ind./East
Central HS) and Justin Smith (Springfield, Ill./Lanphier HS).
Carr reached a mark of 6-10 in the high jump as his
sectional meet to win the event. He enjoyed a stellar outing at the 2009 IHSAA
State Championship as he cleared 6-8 in the high jump to finish in fourth
place. Carr's 4 x 100 relay team claimed second at the state meet as well with
a time of 41.52. In 2008, Carr's height of 6-10 was good enough for second in
the high jump at the state championship.
“Xavier is a great addition to our sprint group as well as
our high jump,” McNichols said. “There was a different kind of competition at
the state meet this year, but he was very impressive in his events and ran a
really strong leg late in the relay.”
Childress ran a variety of events at this past spring's
IHSAA State Championship and recorded a trio of top 15 finishes. His time of
14.72 in the 110m hurdles was good enough for 10th while he was
eighth in the 300m hurdles with a time of 38.98. In the pole vault, Childress
finished 14th with a height of 14-6.
“You always find your great multi-event athletes from the
hurdles and the pole vault,” McNichols said. “Dexter is a strong athlete that
works extremely hard. We have holes to fill in the pole vault and in our multi's,
so we are looking for him to step right in and compete.”
Escalera is a distance runner who culminated his high school
career with a victory in the 3200m run at the 2009 Midwest Meet of Champions in
a time of 9:11.87. Escalera was fourth at the state meet, completing the 3,200m
run in a time of 9:15.50. Also a star in cross country, Escalera finished 18th
at the state meet with a time of 15:59.07.
“Al is an athlete that we have watched for quite a while,”
McNichols commented. “He seemed to get better and better as the season
continued to progress. To see him run the best of race of his career in his
final meet was tremendous. He is one of the fastest two milers we have ever
signed at Indiana State.”
Lyke won the 110m hurdles at his sectional over in Illinois
with a time of 13.8. He went on to win the 110m hurdles (14.37) and was on the
state championship 4 x 100 as well as 4 x 400 relays. Lyke also finished fourth
with a time of 39.02 in the 300m hurdles. His Hillcrest HS team won the 2009
Illinois Team State Championship. Indoors, Lyke's time of 7.62 in the 55m
hurdles ranked second across the state of Illinois in 2009.
“Maurice is a talented hurdler and a state champion,”
McNichols said. “We are looking forward to him stepping right in a filling in
for our graduating seniors right away. He is going to be a great addition to
the team.”
Olive took third as a member of his 4 x 400 meter relay with
a time of 3:24.26 at the 2009 Midwest Meet Of Champions. Individually, his time
of 37.5 at the IHSAA State Championship won the 300m hurdles while his time of
39.58 at the Midwest Meet of Champions was good enough for seventh.
“Corey ranked as one of the fastest in the 300 meter hurdles
in the state last year,” McNichols said. “He has the potential to be one of the
top quarter milers we have had at Indiana State and I expect him to make a nice
transition to the 400 meter hurdles at the collegiate level. “
The final ISU signee, Justin Smith, won his sectional in the
long jump with a mark of 23-11 and went on to finish second at the Illinois
Championship with a jump of 22-6. Smith won the 100 meter state championship
with a personal best time of 10.70 and went on to also capture the 200 meter
crown in 21.67. Indoors, Smith's time of
6.53 in the 55 meters was tops in the state of Illinois, while his mark of 23-1
in the long jump was also tops in the state.
“Justin is one of the top jumpers as well as one of the top
sprinters to come out of the state of Illinois this year,” McNichols said. “He
is another talented athlete that we are looking forward to adding to our
program at Indiana State.”
