MOBILE, Ala. - The University of South Alabama track and field team will send five student-athletes - distance runners Zac Edwards and Saber Salah, and field athletes Latifah Johnson, Noelle Jones, and Angela McCord - to compete in the first round of the NCAA Championship this weekend in Greensboro, N.C.

"I think we have some athletes that have a chance of getting into the national meet," USA head track and field coach Paul Brueske said. "If they perform to full potential, they should do well."

Edwards will look to improve his marks after earning all-conference honors at the Sun Belt Conference Championships earlier this month with a second-place finish in the 5,000 meters. The sophomore is currently ranked sixth in the Sun Belt in the event. He is also ranked fourth in the 10,000 meters and seventh in the 1,500 meters. Edwards also competed in the SBC Indoor Championships, bringing home a fourth-place finish in the 5,000 meters.

Salah returns to competition after earning all-SBC honors twice with a victory in the 1,500 meters and a second-place finish in the 800 meters. The junior distance runner is ranked first in the Sun Belt in the 1,500 meters and second in the 800 meters. Salah also helped the men's distance medley team to victory in this season's Sun Belt Conference Indoor Championships. He has totaled two first-place finishes this season.

Competing for the women, Johnson takes the field after a fourth-place finish in the  hammer throw at the conference meet, while teammate and fellow sophomore McCord is coming off a victory in the javelin for all-SBC honors. McCord is ranked 13th in the region in the event. Also competing will be Jones, who finished behind McCord in the javelin with a fifth-place throw. Johnson has posted three victories this spring, while McCord and Jones have both earned two top spots.

The competition begins Friday at 11 a.m. with the men's javelin and the women's hammer throw.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com.  Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

-USA-