PUEBLO, Colo. – Two Kutztown University Golden Bears will scale the Rocky Mountains this week in competition at the 2012 NCAA Division II Men's Track & Field Championships at Colorado State-Pueblo.
 
Junior Kori Meshaw (Lancaster, PA/Hempfield) (Lancaster, Pa./Hempfield) will compete in the 400-meter hurdles, with sophomore Tyler Rolshausen (Schuylkill Haven, PA/Blue Mountain) (Schuylkill Haven, Pa./Blue Mountain) taking part in the javelin. 
 
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The 400m hurdle preliminaries take place at 9:55 p.m. Eastern time on Thursday, May 24, with the top eight advancing to the finals on Saturday, May 26 at 9:30 p.m. ET.  The javelin, meanwhile, will be contested entirely during Saturday's competition, beginning at 1:15 p.m. ET.
 
For Meshaw, it will be a return to the NCAA Championships after qualifying as a freshman in 2010.  As a sophomore last season, he missed qualifying by just a single spot, making the return this year even more rewarding.
 
“It's really great,” he said.  “Last year, I only missed by one spot.  I was the first person out and it was really frustrating.  This is a great opportunity to get back and I'm really anxious and just excited to get out there.”
 
This year, he entered the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Championships with a time of 52.77 in the hurdles, but shaved over half a second off of that time to run a 52.25 and not only defend his conference title, but also solidified his place among the national qualifiers. 
 
When the selections were announced this year, he was the final competitor to make it his event, although he embraces the role of the underdog and is working hard to make it out the preliminaries.
 
“We're all gonna push each other,” he noted of the field.  “Going in as the last seed, I've got nothing to lose.  I'm happy.  These guys are top notch competitors.”
 
“We've been putting in a lot of work,” he said. “We've been working on our stride pattern between each hurdle, so we if we can get that down, it can all come together.  I'll have the competition; we'll all be pushing each other.  Now is the time to do it.  We've been running against good people all year, but this is the best of the best. “
 
His teammate, Rolshausen will be making his first career trip to the NCAA Championships, but is equally excited about his opportunity.  He qualified off of a throw of 206-9 (63.03m) early in the season at the Fred Hardy Invitational that rated him in the top 10 in Division II for much of the season.
 
“It's a great feeling,” he remarked. “It's been my goal since the beginning of the year.  I heard the atmosphere is ridiculous.  It's 10 times more than any other meet we went to.”
 
Rolshausen said that in his first national appearance, the mental side will be a key for him.
 
“The first time there, I think it'll be important to focus and try not to get nervous,” he commented. 
 
The always tough javelin competition in the PSAC should serve to help him, however, as he is one of four conference competitors to make it to the NCAA Championships.
 
“This was the first year in a while that there are five of us over 200 feet and another right there.  Just about every meet we go up against a couple of guys throwing just as far as.” 
 
In addition to the top competition, the two competitors will be traveling Pueblo, Colorado, a city with an elevation of 4,692 feet above sea level.  
 
Neither is looking at the thin mountain air as an added challenge.
 
“I've been warned about that,” Meshaw noted. “I don't know what to expect, but it's the same for everybody.  We're all on the same playing field.”
 
In the throws, it could even work to an athlete's advantage. 
 
“I'm looking forward to it,” Rolshausen mentioned.  “It could make us throw even farther.”