Bulldogs begin summer international competition

QUERETARO, Mexico/ NAPLES, Italy – A pair of Mississippi State track and field athletes will open their summer seasons with international competition this week.

Freshman javelin thrower Tyriq Horsford will represent Trinidad and Tobago at the NACAC U23 Championships in Queretaro, Mexico, on Sunday. Junior sprinter Karson Kowalchuk is in Naples, Italy, this week, where he will compete for Canada at the World University Games.

Horsford, the third-place finisher at the 2019 NCAA Outdoor Championships, throws at 9:05 a.m. today. The Parlatuvier, Trinidad and Tobago, native finished the collegiate season ranked second in the NCAA in the javelin and as the top freshman. He earned All-american and All-southeastern Conference honors while landing on the conference's All-freshman team in his event.

Kowalchuk is set to compete in the 100 meters and 200 meters and is an option for the 4x100 meter relay. His schedule begins on Monday with the first and second rounds of the 100 meters at 3:50 a.m. and 12:05 p.m. The semifinals and finals will be contested the following day.

The Markham, Ontario, native led State in the 200 meters this season, clocking a 20.81 at the Crimson Tide Invitational where he also placed second in the 100 meters. His season best on the straightaway was a wind-aided 10.35 at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays.

Competition in the 200 meters begins on Wednesday at 11:40 a.m. with the second round being run at 1:40 p.m. The semifinals and finals will be run on Thursday.

Should he run on the men's 4x100 meter relay team, the first round will take place on Friday, and the finals will be run on Saturday.

The Bulldog junior joins Mississippi State's women's basketball team at the competition. Vic Schaefer's squad, representing the USA Team, has advanced to the medal bracket in Italy.