Men's Track & Field | 5/15/2018 9:32:00 PM

Indianapolis, Ind.----The Wingate University track and field team will send three individuals and one relay team to the 2018 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships May 24-26, officials announce Tuesday (complete NCAA Division II schedule). Student-athletes qualify for the championships by reaching the automatic and provisional standards established for each event. The complete list of qualifiers is available at these links: men, women.
 
Johnson C. Smith University will serve as host for the championships at the school's Irwin Belk Complex in Charlotte. The three Bulldog individuals are national meet veterans: senior triple jumper Nate Patterson (Mauldin, S.C.) and junior high jumpers Isaiah Kyle (Morristown, Tenn.) and Vanisha Wilshire (Louisburg, N.C.).
 
For the first time in Wingate's eight-year senior college track and field history, the Bulldogs will send a relay team to the national championship meet. The South Atlantic Conference champion women's 4x100 meter relay team will race in Charlotte. Members include senior Katrice Tolbert (Atlanta, Ga.), juniors Ruva Mzinde (Mutare, Zimbabwe) and Justice Reeves (Atlanta, Ga.) and freshmen Rhyan Madden (Burlington, N.C.) and Tamerah Sebree (Fayetteville, N.C.).
 
Nate Patterson
 
Patterson posted an NCAA Division II automatic qualifying mark in the men's triple jump with his leap of 15.65 meters in his final regular season home appearance (in the Tiffin/Wingate dual meet at Wingate's Irwin Belk Track Complex). He is the school and SAC record holder in the men's triple jump.
 
Patterson jumped over the NCAA automatic qualifying mark on two separate occasions this outdoor season. In the 2018 NCAA indoor meet, he finished seventh in the same event to make first team All-American with his mark of 15.35 meters. In the 2017 NCAA outdoor meet, Patterson was a first team All-American (seventh place) with his brand-new school record of 15.65 meters.
 
Wingate head coach Travis LeFlore on Patterson: "Nate looks to cap his career at Wingate in the best way possible. He has goals beyond this meet, with hopes to compete professionally for his native country. This will be a huge moment for him to finish his career as a Wingate Track and Field student-athlete in our backyard in Charlotte."
 
Isaiah Kyle
 
Kyle earns his sixth trip to the NCAAs (three indoor, three outdoor) in six tries. The five-time All-American received second team laurels at the 2018 NCAA indoor meet with his mark of 2.08 meters. In the 2017 NCAA outdoor meet, Kyle was a first team All-American with his leap of 2.10 meters.
 
Kyle's best career leap (indoors or outdoors) is a 2.19 meter clearance at the 2017 NCAA Division II indoor championships in Birmingham, Ala. He finished second behind Saint Martin's senior Mikel Smith, who cleared 2.22 meters. Kyle is featured on the cover of the most recent NCAA Champion Magazine.
 
Wingate head coach Travis LeFlore on Kyle: "This is Isaiah's sixth NCAA championship meet. We've been preparing all season for this meet. I expect him to jump very well next week."
 
Vanisha Wilshire
 
Wilshire was named the South Atlantic Conference Field Athlete of the Year in April. She won three events at the 2018 SAC Championships as the Bulldogs earned their second consecutive team title. Wilshire won the women's high jump with an NCAA automatic qualifying mark of 1.78 meters. She cleared 1.77 meters at the 2018 Winthrop Adidas Invitational, also an automatic qualifying mark.
 
She holds the Wingate outdoor high jump school record (1.78 meters) and shares the indoor school record with alum Christina Matheny (1.74 meters). Wilshire is a four-time All-American and three-time Southeast Region Field Athlete of the Year (indoor and outdoor in 2017 and indoor in 2018). In the 2018 NCAA indoor meet, Wilshire was third with her mark of 1.74 meters.
 
Wingate head coach Travis LeFlore on Wilshire: "Vanisha enters the NCAA championships after a historic season in the high jump. She's locked in and has prepared herself for this meet. We hope to see more big marks from her next week."
 
Wingate women's 4x100 meter relay team
 
Reeves, Sebree, Madden and Mzinde (with alternate Tolbert) hope lightning can strike twice at Johnson C. Smith's Irwin Belk Complex. The Bulldog quartet won the South Atlantic Conference 4x100 meter relay on the same track Friday, April 20 with a school-record time of 46.11. Wingate is the only Southeast Region relay team in either the 4x100 or the 4x400 in this year's NCAA outdoor meet.
 
Wingate head coach Travis LeFlore on the Bulldog 4x100 meter relay team: "This is a very exciting moment for the members of this relay team. They have worked very hard to run strong individual legs and to see it culminate into a NCAA berth makes this work worthwhile. I'm excited to see what they will do at their first Championships."
 
FIFTEEN BULLDOGS EACH ALL-REGION LAURELS IN 21 EVENTS

New Orleans, La.----The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) has named All-Region honorees for the 2018 Division II outdoor track & field season. Nine Wingate women and six Bulldog men have been honored as All-Southeast Region selections by the nation's coaches in 21 events.

Wingate women on All-Southeast Region team
 
Clementine Archinard, 10,000 meters         
Taylor Gardin, shot put                     
Valerie Griesche, 3000 meter steeplechase  
Hannah Hinson, discus, hammer      
Rhyan Madden, 4x100 meter relay   
Ruvarshe Mzinde, 400 meters, 4x100 meter relay
Justice Reeves, 100 meter dash, 200 meter dash, 4x100 meter relay                      
Tamerah Sebree, 100 meter dash, 200 meter dash, 4x100 meter relay                               
Vanisha Wilshire, high jump, long jump, triple jump
 
Wingate men on All-Southeast Region team
 
Bryce Bennett, long jump
Isaiah Kyle, high jump
Nepolian Patel, 5000 meters
Nate Patterson, triple jump
Malcolm Reed, 400 meters
Elliot Zirwas, shot put, discus
 
WINGATE UNIVERSITY
 
A comprehensive, independent and growing university, Wingate serves more than 3,600 students in North Carolina. Founded in 1896, the University offers 37 undergraduate majors as well as graduate and professional programs. Wingate is home to the Cannon College of Arts and Sciences, the Levine College of Health Sciences, the Byrum School of Business, the Thayer School of Education and the School of Sport Sciences. Wingate blends in-class exploration with out-of-class application to deliver an uncommon and life-changing educational experience.
 
In addition to a robust intramural athletics program, Wingate student athletes compete in 22 NCAA Division II sports. The University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past 12 years. Wingate is first in the 2000s among NCAA Division II and North Carolina's colleges and universities with 99 CoSIDA Academic All-America® selections. Wingate is tops among all SAC schools with 108 lifetime Academic All-America® honorees. For more information on WU athletics, go to www.wingatebulldogs.com. Current news and videos can be found at www.wingate.edu.