Tweet

NAMPA, Idaho – Virginia Tech redshirt sophomore Frances Dowd (800 meters) and senior Keith Ricks (60 meters) each competed in the preliminary rounds of their respective events on day one of the 2012 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championship at the Jacksons Indoor Track Friday evening.

Ricks finished fourth in a very tight second heat in the 60 meters with a time of 6.62, just one hundredth of a second off his school record and personal best. Ricks, who ran his second fastest time ever in the 60, was 12th overall among the competitors in the preliminary heats in a deep national field, which did not advance him to the final.

Ricks wrapped up an indoor season in which he reset his own school record in the 60 meters for the second time running a winning time of 6.61 at the VT Elite Meet in February. He had previously set the record of 6.64 with a win at the VT Invitational. Ricks also placed fifth in the 60 meters at the ACC Championship (6.72).

Dowd, who was honored with the NCAA Elite 89 Award last night as the female student-athlete with the top grade point average at the championship, finished eighth in her heat in the 800 meter prelims in a time of 2:09.38. She was 15th overall in the prelims, which did not advance her onto tomorrow’s final.

This indoor season, Dowd earned All-ACC honors with a third place finish in the 800 meters at the ACC Championship (2:10.41) and last Saturday, she reset her own school record at Notre Dame’s Alex Wilson Invitational (2:05.18). Dowd initially set the school record in the 800 meters (2:07.22) at the SPIRE Division I Collegiate Invitational, while also setting the school record in the 600 (1:30.99).

Although Ricks and Dowd did not advance to the final of their event, because they finished in the top-16, they will be eligible to be named second team All-Americans by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) next week.

Tomorrow, Tech will have six student-athletes in action on the second and final day at the NCAA Indoor Championship: junior Ronnie Black in the high jump (5 p.m. ET), junior Alexander Ziegler and senior Marcel Lomnicky in the weight throw (6 p.m. ET), freshmen Victoria von Eynatten and Martina Schultze in the pole vault (7 p.m. ET) and senior Hasheem Halim in the triple jump (7:30 p.m. ET).

ESPN3 will stream the meet live tomorrow from 7:00-11:15 p.m. A tape delay of the championship will air Sunday, March 18 from 7:30-9:30 p.m., on ESPNU. NCAA.com and broncosports.com will stream what ESPN3 is not covering on Saturday (12:30-7:00 p.m.). All times are Eastern Standard.

For more information regarding the NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championship, log on to http://www.ncaa.com/championships/trackfield-indoor-men/d1

For updates on Virginia Tech track & field, follow the Hokies on Twitter (@VT_Track).