TAMPA, Fla. - The Sycamore track and field student-athletes who competed on Friday battled hard despite having to face a rain delay during the afternoon at the NCAA East Regional.
 
"Today was a tough day," head coach Angela Martin said. "Each of our athletes competed hard and overcame something, but it just wasn't in the cards for them to get into the next round. Brittany, Taylor and Tristan have all left their mark on this program and have always represented ISU well. Erin gets another opportunity to compete tomorrow along with Jaime and Hunter. I am looking forward to seeing their efforts."
 
Senior Brittany Neeley got things going on the track for the Sycamores in the 800-meter run quarterfinals on Friday afternoon. After finding herself in a fast heat yesterday in the first round, her heat went out fast again on Friday with the leaders running a 59 second split through the first 400. Neeley ran the second-best time of her career at 2:06.12 for a sixth place finish in her heat. The winner of her heat, Susan Aneno of Connecticut ran the top overall time of 2:02.71 and Neeley's time finished 16th overall, just four spots away from qualifying for Oregon.
 
Neeley's stellar NCAA career came to an end on Friday, but she made sure to go out with the best races of her career. During the indoor season, Neeley ran the fifth-fastest time in Sycamore history in the 800-meter run at 2:07.25, and carried that momentum into outdoor season where she ran the second-fastest 1500-meter run at Ole Miss with a time of 4:22.31. She then capped off her regular season by winning Missouri Valley Conference titles in both the 800 and 1500-meter runs by two seconds and three seconds, respectively. On Thursday at the NCAA East Region Prelim, Neeley put the icing on the cake by crossing the finish line with the second-best time in school history in the 800-meter run at 2:05.30.
 
After the sun had set, All-American Taylor Austin took the track in heat three of the 3000-meter steeplechase with a trip to Oregon on the line. Once the starting gun was fired, Austin immediately went to the front and managed to lead the pack for six out of the seven laps. As the last 100-meters of the race approached, Austin found herself in a battle for third with Sarah Zieve from Michigan and she eventually took fourth place at 10:07.79.
 
Friday night saw the end of Taylor Austin's superb Sycamore career, as her time fell just short of qualifying for nationals, ending up 14th overall. During her tenure as a Sycamore, Austin claimed three consecutive MVC titles in the 3000-meter steeplechase from 2016-18. She also owns the school record in the 3000-meter steeplechase with an incredible time of 9:54.01. This outdoor season also saw Austin win the MVC outdoor championship in the 5000-meter run, and she also ran the fastest-time in ISU history at the Drake Relays at 16:26.50. During the indoor season she was the MVC champ in the women's 3000-meter run and she also owns the school record in that event with a time of 9:23.58. Keeping with the theme, Austin owns the top time in ISU history in the indoor 5K as well at 16:31.84. The Griffith, Indiana native also holds the third-best time in the 1500-meter run at 4:23.82. In 2017, Austin not only earned her way to the East Regional, she also advanced to the National Championships in Oregon where she earned Honorable Mention All-American honors in the steeplechase, placing 18th at 10:11.63.
 
Managing to get his race in before the delay, Tristan Parmley again went head-to-head with some of the nation's top sprinters in the first round of the 200-meter dash. Much like Neeley, Parmley ran in the fastest heat of the event as heat two produced the two top times of the competition. Tennessee's Mustaqeem Williams ran the top time of 20.11 and Eric Harrison of Ohio State took the second overall time of 20.27. Parmley held his own, finishing sixth in heat two by clocking a time of 21.03 which was also 41st overall.
 
Finishing his career as one of the top Sycamore sprinters, Parmley started his career as a walk-on before earning a scholarship his sophomore year. During his junior year he had his first big breakout performance at the 2017 MVC Outdoor Championships where he ran the fastest time in ISU history in the 100-meter dash at 10.29 for third place and All-MVC honors. During his senior season, Parmley earned All-MVC honors at the MVC Indoor Championships in the 200-meter dash, crossing the line at 21.49 for the third-best time in school history. Outdoor season featured what was perhaps the biggest moment in the French Lick native's career, as he claimed his first-ever MVC title in the 100-meter dash by defeating the favorite from Illinois State, Anderson Devonish, with a time of 10.34. On top of owning the school record in the 100, he can also claim the fifth-fastest time in Indiana State history in the outdoor 200-meter dash at 20.89.
 
The lone competitor in the field on Friday, Erin Reese battle hard despite the less than favorable weather conditions. Initially slated to begin at 1:15 p.m., a storm passed through the area right as the women of flight three were about to begin, pushing competition back to 6:00 p.m. Once competition resumed, Reese fouled her first two throws, but stayed strong and earned a mark of 50.50m (165-08) on her final throw which finished 18th overall, just short of qualifying for nationals.
 
Reese's time in Tampa is not yet over as she has another opportunity to earn a trip to Hayward Field in Oregon tomorrow morning at 8:45 a.m. in the hammer throw. Entering tomorrow's competition she owns the school record and the 12th-best mark nationally of 65.16m (213-09) from two weeks ago at the MVC Outdoor Championships.
 
The senior hurdler, Daley Carter, was unable to compete on Friday due to injury. However, Carter's career at Indiana State has been phenomenal and honored the tradition of "Hurdle U." During his time at State, Carter was able to train with All-Americans Adarius Washington and Marcus Neely and earned a trip to three NCAA East Regional competitions. His first appearance in the NCAA East Regional came in 2015 where he finished 34th overall with a time of 14.29. He earned his first All-MVC honors during the 2015 indoor season where he finished second in the 60-meter hurdles behind Washington.
 
In 2017, Carter returned to the MVC podium during the indoor season in the 60-meter hurdles where he finished second to Neely. He also took second in the 110-meter hurdles during outdoor season for All-MVC honors, where he ran the sixth-best time in Sycamore history of 13.78. Two weeks later at the NCAA East Regional he came close to qualifying for the NCAA national meet, clocking a time of 13.97 which was 16th in the East Region. This season, Carter qualified for the East Region Prelim with a time of 14.04 from the Tiger Track Classic at Auburn.
 
Tomorrow will be a field day for the Sycamores as Reese will compete in the hammer throw, Jaime Murtagh will make an appearance in the high jump and Hunter Schuman is going be throwing in the shot put.
 
For the latest information on the Sycamore Track & Field teams, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook and Twitter.