TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Completed men's and women's declarations for the 2021 NCAA East Preliminary round were released on Thursday afternoon, with the Indiana State track and field program slated to send nine athletes to compete in Jacksonville, Fla., from May 26-29 at the University of North Florida.
 
To qualify for the East Region meet, student-athletes must be in the top-48 of an individual event or a top-24 relay squad. Only 12 individuals and 12 relays from each event will advance to the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Ore., from June 9-12.
 
Freshman Ryann Porter enters the competition next week as the highest-seeded Sycamore in the ISU delegation. Fresh off of her Missouri Valley Conference title, Ryann Porter will compete in the triple jump with the 22nd-best mark in the East of 12.91m (42-04.25), also the second-best leap in Sycamore history.
 
In the field on the men's side, Kevin Krutsch heads to Jacksonville seeded 28th in the men's high jump with his clearance of 2.12m (6-11.05) from the Kentucky Invitational. Simliar to Porter, Krutsch is coming off of an MVC title and boasts the ninth-best jump in ISU history.
 
Frankie Young III will also appear in the field for the Blue & White after qualifying for the East Preliminary with the 29th-best jump of 7.52m (24-08.25) at the Kentucky Invitational. Young's jump is currently sixth on the Indiana State all-time list.
 
Freshman Wyatt Puff will be the only other competitor in the field for the Trees, making his regional debut in the shot put. Throwing in one of the best conferences in the nation, Puff qualified with the 42nd-best mark in the east of 17.81m (58-05.25) after placing seventh in the MVC with the toss. His throw, however, boosts him to seventh in the Sycamore record book.
 
On the track for the Sycamore men, Matthew Lewis-Banks enters as the top seed for ISU, owning the 37th-best time in the East in the 110-meter hurdles of 13.98, recorded most recently at the Valley championships where he claimed the title.
 
JaVaughn Moore will also be making his was down south, competing in the 100-meter dash with the 42nd-seed in the East of 10.39 from the Crimson Tide Invitational in April. Moore is coming off of an MVC Championship performance in both the 100 and 200-meter dashes.
 
In addition to their individual events, Lewis-Banks and Moore will join Jhivon Wilson and Noah Malone in the 4X100-meter relay. Their relay squad holds the school record of 39.76 from the Pacesetter Sports Invitational, giving them the 12th-best slot in the East Region.
 
Representing the women on the track will be Jocelyn Quiles in the 3000-meter steeplechase. At the MVC Championships, Quiles ran the second-best steeplechase time in school history of 10:20.10 to give her the 44th-best time in the East and earn All-Valley honors behind a third-place finish. She also took second in the 5K over the weekend.
 
Events at the NCAA East Preliminary are slated to begin for Indiana State at 6 p.m. ET on Wednesday, May 26 with the opening round of the 110-meter hurdles and the men's shot put. North Florida's SWOOPLife Live Network will provide livestreaming each day of the competition.
 
For the latest information on the Sycamore Cross Country and Track & Field teams, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook and Twitter.