CSU women's track begins season at Captains' Invitational

Women's Track and Field | 12/4/2014 10:27:00 AM

BALTIMORE – The Coppin State women's track and field team begins the 2014-15 season at the Christopher Newport University Captains' Invitational Saturday morning at the Freeman Center. The Eagles enter the season with plenty of experience along with some talented newcomers.
 
Leading the cast of 11 returnees is junior high jumper Deandra Daniel, who is currently a four-time MEAC champion with a personal best and school record clearance of six feet. Daniel, a NCAA Division I Track and Field Outdoor Preliminary Championship qualifier, competed this past summer in the Commonwealth Games in Scotland, England as well as a meet in Canada while representing her country of Trinidad & Tobago.
 

Junior sprinter Melissa Caddle-Hope (pictured left) is also back this season for the Eagles. She competed in the World Indoor Championship meet in Sopot, Poland representing her home country of Guyana. The CSU school record holder in the 200 and 400-meter dashes competed at the NCAA Division I Track and Field preliminary Championships in 2013.
 
Caddle-Hope adds championship experience to the Eagles squad this season as she won the 400 meters at the 2013 MEAC Indoor Championships and placed second in the event at the MEAC Outdoor Championships in the same year.
 
Junior sprinter Tanaya Yarde was a member of the Eagles' 4 x 200-meter relay winning team at the Penn Relays during her career. Yarde along with sophomore Alexis Marsh return to provide relay experience. They helped the Eagles score points last season in both the MEAC Indoor and Outdoor championship meets in the 4x400-meter relay.
 
Coppin State also welcomes back three field athletes who all scored points during the MEAC championship meet. Sophomores Ellena Torres (discus), Alethia Edwards (javelin) and Danielle Baker (high jump) impressed last season and made key contributions to Coppin State's team success.
 
Other returnees for the Eagles include sophomore distance runner Kadeem Curtis, sophomore sprinter Miriam Ekwuru, sophomore sprinter Camry Torian and sophomore distance runner Kesha Medas-King. They all participated in last years' MEAC indoor or outdoor championship meets.
 
The Eagles newcomers include Randi Bohler (multi), Ramata Fofana (jumps/hurdles), Shawdae Frederick (hurdles/sprints), Natasha Patterson (jumps) and Robbi Rogers (sprints).
 
The outdoor season begins with a trip to the Texas Southern Relays in Houston on March 20.