BATON ROUGE — Under the direction of first-year head coach Dennis Shaver the LSU men’s and women’s track and field teams open the 2005 season Saturday when they host the Purple Tiger Invitational at the Carl Maddox Fieldhouse.
Action will begin at 9:30 a.m. with the field events. Running events will follow at 11 a.m.
“This is a great opportunity for our athletes to gage their progress and measure where they’re at in relation to last year in a competitive environment,” said Shaver. “The only difference this year is that we have a large number of athletes, especially on the women’s side, that will be competing in their first collegiate meet and some in even their first ever indoor meet.”
With the departure of a stellar senior class that included five NCAA champions and numerous All-Americans, the second-ranked Lady Tigers will look to a talented pool of incoming freshmen to carry on the strong LSU tradition.
Highlighting that group of newcomers is freshman sprint sensation Ashley Owens. The 2004 U.S. and World Junior champion in the 100 meters, Owens begins the season ranked No. 1 in the country in the 60-meter dash.
The Lady Tigers will also look to veteran performers Hazelann Regis and Neisha Bernard-Thomas to guide the youthful Lady Tiger squad. Regis was a semifinalist in the 400 meters at the 2004 Olympic Games and helped LSU to the NCAA title in the 4×400 relay last season.
Bernard-Thomas also ran on that national championship relay team a year ago, and is the reigning NCAA champion in the outdoor 800 meters.
On the men’s side, Olympian Kelly Willie and All-American Willie Bradley headlines the list of returnees for the seventh-ranked Tiger squad. Willie won gold as part of the United States’ 4×400 relay in Athens and earned runner-up honors in the open quarter at last year’s NCAA Championships. Bradley was an All- merica selection in the indoor and outdoor triple jump a year ago.
Taking the track for the first time as a Tiger will be freshman standout Xavier Carter. A nine-time Florida state champion in the sprints, Carter set the junior national record in the indoor 200 meters as a senior, clocking 20.69. He is expected to run the 60-meter dash Saturday.
Following the Purple Tiger Invitational, LSU will return to action Jan. 21-22, when they travel to Fayetteville for the Arkansas Invitational.