May 25, 2001

Tallahassee, Fla. - With the NCAA qualifying list coming out late Thursday night, the Florida State Seminoles found out that six student athletes will be given a ticket to Eugene, Ore., to compete in the 2001 NCAA Outdoor Championships. Shawn Brown leads the group, as the junior transfer from the University of South Florida cleared an automatic qualifying mark earlier in the year, when he cleared the high jump bar at 7-04.50. Joining Brown in Oregon will be Joe Allen, Mario Lowe, Matt Mason, Laura Gerber and Makiba Batten. Gerber Brown and Allen will all make their second trip of the year to the collegiate championships, as each athlete was named All-American after the 2001 indoor season. The six qualifiers ranks as one of the largest groups FSU has ever sent to nationals.

Shawn Brown, a Brandon, Fla., resident has already seen immense success in his first season with Florida State. After transferring from USF this year, Brown owned the Seminoles' and the ACC's top mark in both the indoor and outdoor seasons. After earning ACC Athlete of the Week honors in the indoor season when he put up what was then the third-best mark in the country, he ended his 2001 indoor season as an All-American. Brown excelled even further in the outdoor season, clearing his season-best mark at the ACC Championships, where he grabbed the ACC individual title. Brown currently stands third on the NCAA list, behind Tora Harris (Princeton) and Charles Clinger (Weber State). Clinger, who enters the weekend with a mark of 7-08.50, won the NCAA Indoor Championship.

Allen, a senior from Toledo, Ohio will look to finish a dream season with an NCAA Championship. Allen grabbed the ACC title in both the triple jump and the long jump, and followed that with the ACC's Performer of the Year honor. Allen took home All-America honors in the indoor season, when he finished the NCAA Championships in fifth place with a mark of 25-09.25. Allen enters this weekend with a mark of 26-feet, placing him eighth on the qualifying list. Mario Lowe will join Allen in the sand, as the junior from Lithonia, Ga., enters this weekend as the Seminoles' top triple jumper. Lowe will represent FSU in the triple jump in Oregon, after hitting a mark of 52-07.50 at the Clemson Quad Meet.

The men's squad will round out their top performers with the emergence of freshman standout Matt Mason. Mason hit his stride this season, as the Marietta, Ga., native ran a 50.16 at the Seminole Twilight Meet, crossing the line in first place in the 400m hurdles. Mason's time places him in the top-ten heading into the championships.

Florida State's women squad will see the return of Laura Gerber to the NCAA Championships, after the junior from Geneva, Switzerland finished the season as an indoor All-American. Gerber has worked her way back to the collegiate championships in the 800m, crossing the line in 2:06.08 in the Seminoles' final meet of the season. Gerber, who qualified for the Olympic trials for Zimbabwe, also set a national record in the 400m for her native country in 2000. Joining Gerber will be junior Makiba Batten. The Detroit, Mich., native returns to the collegiate championships after claiming All-America honors in the 2000 outdoor season. Batten went on to set a new school record in the discus in 2000. After failing to qualify for the NCAA Championships in the indoor season, Batten returns to national competition in Oregon. Her mark in the discus of 171-07 at the Seminole Twilight places her 14th in the country. Batten will see a familiar foe in the thrower's circle, as Clemson's Jamine Moton enters the competition with the No. 5 mark in the country. Batten bettered Moton in their only head-to-head competition this year.

Florida State will send its six qualifiers to compete on Eugene, Ore., beginning Wed., May 30. The competition, which will take place on the campus of the University of Oregon, will conclude Sat., June 2.