May 25, 2006

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GREENSBORO, N.C. --- The No. 12 University of North Carolina women and the No. 13 University of North Carolina men will begin NCAA competition Friday at the 2006 East Regional Track and Field Championships at Belk Track on the campus of North Carolina A&T. The women will send 12 competitors, while the men will be represented by seven.

Leading the way for the women will be three-time NCAA champion and 2004 Olympian Laura Gerraughty. Gerraughty, a senior from Nashua, N.H., currently leads the nation in the shot put with a top mark of 61 feet, 6 3/4 inches. In addition to the shot, Gerraughty will also compete in the discus, where she currently ranks 11th in the nation (181-11).

The discus looks to be a very strong event for the Tar Heel women. Joining Gerraughty will be senior Marija Kurtovic and sophomores Jocelyn White and Riana Lynn. All four women currently stand in the top 13 in the region. White, a Glassboro, N.J., native, was an All-America performer in the event a season ago.

In addition to Gerraughty, the Tar Heels will have another NCAA champion competing in the jumps. Senior Sheena Gordon, the 2006 NCAA indoor high jump champion, will compete in both the high jump and the triple jump. Gordon is one of just four women in the East Region to have cleared 6-0 so far this outdoor season. Juniors Rhian Jenks (pole vault) and Kelly Fazekas (shot put) will also be in action in field events this weekend.

On the track, Carolina will feature a trio of strong middle distance runners. Junior Georgia Kloss enters the 800 meters with a top time of 2:04.53, the best in the region this year and No. 4 in the nation. Megan Kaltenbach will compete in the 1,500, while Cassie King will run the steeplechase. Kloss and Kaltenbach were both members of Carolina's NCAA champion distance medley relay in March, while King was an All-America performer in the steeplechase in 2005.

Two Tar Heel hurdlers will also be in action. Junior Porscha Dobson will run the 100-meter hurdles, while sophomore Colleen Farley is entered in the 400-meter hurdles.

On the men's side, UNC will send one of the top throwing groups in the nation to the regional meet. Three Tar Heels currently rank in the top five in the nation in their respective events. Senior Vikas Gowda, the national runner-up in the discus in 2005, is third in that event with a top mark of 202-7. The 2004 Olympian is also eighth in the shot put (64-4 1/2), where he will be joined by sophomore Ian Reynolds.

Junior Nick Owens will also compete in two events. The Shelton, Wash., native specializes in the hammer throw, where he currently ranks fifth in the nation with a top mark of 229-3. He will also compete in the discus. Junior Justin Ryncavage has been stellar in 2006 after redshirting last season. His top effort in the javelin throw of 241-3 is a school record and the third best mark in the nation this year. He will be joined in the event by freshman Adam Montague, who ranks sixth in the region.

Aside from the throws, UNC will have two other men in action. Junior Britt Taylor enters the long jump with the 10th-best mark in the region (24-8 1/4). Sophomore Reggie Berry will be Carolina's only man on the track as he competes in the 200 meters.