Three CAC student-athletes - Frostburg State's Emily Furr, Salisbury's Chelsea Tavik and York's Ben Edwards - were selected to compete in the 2011 NCAA Track & Field Championships May 26-28 at Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware, Ohio.

Furr, a senior, has earned a spot in the women's triple jump for the second time in her career.  Tavik, a sophomore, will compete in the women's shot put.  On the men's side, Edwards will compete in the 400 hurdles.

Furr has come on strong over the last month, provisionally qualifying for the outdoor championships in each of the last three meets, including a third-place showing with a 11.41 at the ECAC Outdoor Championships last Thursday.

However, she will have some ground to make up at the NCAA's as she was selected as the 23rd participant in a 24-member field. She earned a spot in the NCAA Championships with a season-best jump of 11.58 meters, which she set in late April at the Paul Kaiser Classic at Shippensburg Univ. The top nine participants in the triple jump will advance to the finals, while the top eight finishers earn All-American status.

As a sophomore in 2009, Furr earned All-American honors in the high jump, but missed the finals in the triple jump after qualifying for the championships with a school record 12.00 meters.

Tavik qualified for the shot put competition with her top throw of the 2011 outdoor season, covering a distance of 44' 7.5" at the Penn Relays in late April. The distance is a school record, and puts her as the 17th-seeded student-athlete, of 24 invited, in the event.

Tavik will begin her quest toward an individual national championship on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. This will not be her first championship experience as she qualified for the indoor championships back in March, placing 10th in the shot put.

Salisbury has claimed five individual track & field national championships, with four coming during the outdoor season. Tavik is vying to be the first female individual national champion in Salisbury University history.

Edwards qualified for the championships in the 400-meter hurdles as he posted the 17^th best time in the nation at 53.34 seconds. That time came at the Paul Kaiser Classic in Shippensburg on April 30. That time not only earned Edwards a spot in the championships but it also broke a school record that he already held.

Edwards, who led the Spartans to their first Capital Athletic Conference championship in 19 years in mid-April, is the first Spartan to qualify for the national championship meet since former hammer thrower Tim Johnson earned a berth at the 2002 championships in St. Paul's, Minnesota.

The Spartan senior has had a banner 2011 campaign. He earned the Daniel J. Klinedinst Award signifying the most outstanding York College senior male athlete. He won the conference championship in the 110 hurdles, the 400 hurdles and was a member of the victorious 4x400 relay squad. Edwards was a three-time Capital Athletic Conference Men's Track & Field Athlete of the Week and a two-time Spartan Athlete of the Week.

"I am very proud of Ben and the season he has put together," said Spartan head coach and Capital Athletic Conference Coach-of-the-Year Erick Camodeca. "He has been a leader on this squad since the moment he walked onto campus.  I am very excited for Ben to get the opportunity to compete against the best athletes in Division III. I know he will give his best effort and represent York in tremendous fashion. "

Edwards' performance in the CAC championships was outstanding. He won the 110-meter hurdles with at time of 16.60, winning by over 0.46 seconds. Edwards then captured the 400-meter title with a time of 56.11 as he won the event by over two seconds.

Edwards is the only Capital Athletic Conference male track & field athlete to earn a berth in the championships in 2011.