Natasha Akbarizadeh Qualifies for NCAA East Region Championships
May 20, 2016 | Track & Field
INDIANAPOLIS — Gardner-Webb sophomore Natasha Akbarizadeh (Maple Ridge, British Columbia) qualified for the NCAA Division I East Region Championships for the first time in her career, announced NCAA officials with the release of the list of preliminary round declared athletes Thursday.
Akbarizadeh and the rest of the 48-athlete field will compete in the 2016 NCAA Division I East Region Championships, which is scheduled for May 26-28 on the campus of North Florida in Jacksonville, Florida. The Maple Ridge, British Columbia, Canada native enters the East Region Championships ranked 24th in the region, placing her firmly in the thick of the 48-athlete field.
Akbarizadeh has steadily improved over the course of the season, adding more than four meters to her top mark from last spring - which culminated in a school-record throw of 59.65 meters at the Mountaineer Outdoor Open on April 30. The sophomore hurler has broken the 58-meter barrier in each of the last three meets - including a mark of 58.03 meters at the Big South Conference Outdoor Championships to earn a spot on the Big South All-Conference Second Team.
The East Region Championships are slated to begin on Thursday, May 26 in Jacksonville, Florida, on the campus of the University of North Florida. Complete start lists and other meet information will be available on ncaa.com early next week.
