WILMINGTON, N.C. – While the end of the track and field season is still months away, UNC Wilmington begins an intense stretch of meets this Friday when it begins defense of its Colonial Athletic Association Men’s Track & Field Championship in Williamsburg, Va., on the campus of William & Mary. “On the men’s side, we return a lot of people who scored for us last season,” said Head Coach Jim Sprecher. “The women are a more diverse group, split between newcomers and returnees, and I’m eager to see how they respond to the challenges of the meet.” “The keys to defending our title and the women improving will be our ability to overcome any homefield advantage that William & Mary has as well as just being able to perform up to our expectations. William & Mary is very strong this season on both sides.” After winning the 2007 championship, the Seahawks, who return just one individual CAA Champion on the men’s, will look to a similar cast of athletes this season. Junior Matt Miller won the Decathlon title as a sophomore and returns this season looking to make it two-in-a-row in an event that is has been dominated by the Seahawks this season. UNCW boasts the top four scores in the Decathlon with junior Brian Blumenstein topping the conference list with a school record 6,509 points. The Seahawk men will look to their sprinters to key the drive for a ninth conference title. Leading off for the Seahawks in the 100 Meter sprint are seniors John-Tyler Evans, Mo Peacock and junior John Carr. Evans posted the second best time in the conference with a mark of 10.65 set just last week at the Chanticleer Classic. Peacock and Carr, meanwhile, check in at fourth both with a time of 10.76. Carr became the conference leader in the 200 Meters when he posted a school-record time of 21.43 at the Chanticleer Classic. UNCW owns the top four spots in the 400 Meters. Heading that impressive showing is senior Uri Robinson whose time of 47.44 leads the conference and fellow senior teammate Chris Courson, who is second with a time of 47.49. Senior Ernest Asante has been a solid contributor each season for the Seahawks in the Hurdles and this season was no different as he is ranked first in the 110 Hurdles (14.26) and is second to teammate Devon Watlington in the 400 Hurdles at 52.86. Watlington leads the CAA in the 400 hurdles with a time of 52.76 set at the CCU Shamrock Invitational in mid-March. In relay action the Seahawks enter the meet as the defending champions in the 4×400. UNCW’s time of 3:10.16 is more than five seconds better than second-place George Mason in 2008. The 4×100 Relay is second with a time of 441.64. In the field events, UNCW owns four top marks. Sophomore Aaron Wiggins jumped a conference-best 16-3 1/2 in the Pole Vault and looks to become UNCW’s fourth straight champion in the event. UNCW Pole Vaulters have won eight conference titles since 1990. Reigning CAA Athlete-of-the-Week Brandyn Mitchell made the most of his last outing before the conference championships when he took over the conference lead in the Long Jump with a distance of 23-8 1/4, set at the Chanticleer Classic. Senior Bruce Smith, who red-shirted last season following shoulder surgery, enters his final CAA Championship looking to give UNCW its first Javelin title since 1996. Smith set a school-record earlier this season with a throw of 204-3, which also qualified him for the NCAA East Regional. On the women’s side, the Seahawks look to improve upon their fourth-place showing in 2007. In the 100 and 200 Meter sprints, junior Shayne Moore is ranked fifth and ninth, respectively, in the CAA. Moore owns a top time of 12.07 in the 100 and 24.89 in the 200. A possible position of strength for the Lady Seahawks could be the 10,000 meters where four runners are ranked in the top 10. Freshman Lauren Wells has made an immediate impact and is the CAA’s leading runner in the event with a time of 37.28.71. Kathleen Casto, another freshman, is third at 37:42.95. In the 100 Hurdles junior Aisha Jones’ time of 14.13 ranks third among CAA runners. UNCW will look to the Jumps to earn them valuable points. The Seahawks have at least three jumpers ranked in three of the four events. In the high Jump, junior Jennifer Grabowski is the highest ranked Seahawk, checking at third with a height of 5-7. Freshman Annie Powell is in a four-way tie, along with sophomore Jenna Helmick, for the fourth best jump in the conference at 11-11 3/4. Junior Sarah Portee enters the Long Jump as the second-ranked athlete based on her season-best mark of 19-5 1/2, set last weekend at the Chanticleer Classic. Portee is also ranked in the Triple Jump with a fourth-place mark of 38-9 1/2. Junior Jaraea Shepherd will carry the Seahawks in the Throw events. Shepherd is fourth in the Discus (135-8) and third in the Hammer (161-6). Rounding out the UNCW contingent in the throws are sophomore Meredith Rutledge (131-5) and junior Lori Harrison (124-4) in the Javelin. - Courtesy UNCW Sports Information