University of Houston Athletics
Houston Track & Field 2014 Signing Class
2/6/2014 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field
Feb. 6, 2014
Head Coach Leroy Burrell on the 2014 Signing Class so far:
"We've really focused on recruiting athletes who will add strength to the areas and events that are missing. We believe that with these additions, our program will be successful and will help propel us into the top-ranked teams on both the men's and women's teams."
PAIGE LAWRENCE | BOWIE HIGH SCHOOL | ARLINGTON, TEXAS | SPRINTS & JUMPS
Lawrence is a sprinter and jumper from Bowie High School in Arlington, Texas. She is the 2013 district 3-5A champion in the long jump (18'-5.5"). She also qualified for the Region I-5A meet in the long jump where she placed sixth overall. Lawrence is also a member of Bowie's 4x400 and 4x200 relay teams along with fellow signing class member Diayja Sheppard. This season, she attended the Carl Lewis High School Invitational and placed fifth with a leap of 16'-11". Lawrence has recorded personal bests of 24.80 in the 200-meter and 18'-7" in the long jump.
Quote from head coach Leroy Burrell: "We are really high on Paige. She is an outstanding multi sport athlete from Arlington Bowie. She is an outstanding jumper with speed. She also has the speed having competed on the sprint relay at Bowie We are grateful to Coach Sammy Epps and the rest of the Bowie coaching staff for their trust in our program to these outstanding young ladies."
DIAYJA SHEPPARD | BOWIE HIGH SCHOOL | ARLINGTON, TEXAS | SPRINTS & JUMPS
Sheppard, a sprinter and high jumper from Bowie High School in Arlington, Texas, joins her fellow teammate, Paige Lawrence, in the 2014 signing class. She won the girls high jump competition during the Carl Lewis High School Invitational the past two years, clearing 5'-6" this year. She has a personal best of 5'-8". Sheppard placed second during the district meet in the high jump (5'-6") and placed in the top three of the District 3-5A in the girl's 200-meter dash with a time of 26.02. She was also a member of the 4x200 and 4x400 relay teams for Bowie High School.
Quote from head coach Leroy Burrell: "We are very excited with the addition of Daiyja. She is a national class high jumper from Arlington Bowie High School. She fills a specific need in our program as a high jumper. We believe we can exploit the field events, especially the jumps. She jumped 5'8" last year and is tied for No. 7 among returning high jumpers for her senior year. We think she will jump close to six feet this year and contend for national prominence in college."
JAMAAD MUSE | TIMBER CREEK HIGH SCHOOL | ERIAL, N.J. | SPRINTS
Muse, a sprinter from Timber Creek High School in Erial, N.J., is a 2013 regional and state champion in the 100- and 200-meter dash. He also competed in the 200m and 400m at the USATF National Junior Olympic Championship in Greensboro, N.C. He reached no. 11 in the 2013 national rankings after running a personal best time of 46.67 in the 400m.
Quote from head coach Leroy Burrell: "Jamaad is a 46.47-400m runner (21.54 in the 200m) from Timber Creek High School in New Jersey. Jamaad is the No. 4 returning 400m runner in the country who has not reached his full potential. He's 6'-1", long, lean, fast and will solidify our long sprints for years to come. We believe he has world class potential."
MIKHAIL MICHEAUX | EAST REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL | VOORHEES, N.J. | SPRINTS & JUMPS
Micheaux, a sprinter and jumper from East Regional High School in Voorhees, N.J., adds to the Cougars strong suit. So far this season, he is ranked in the top 20 in the nation in the 55-meter dash. Last season, Micheaux competed at the AAU Junior Olympic Championships in August where he placed second in the long jump (23'-3.25") for the No. 1 best leap in New Jersey, 54th top time in the nation. He is the 2013 New Jersey Group 4 State Champion in the long jump.
Quote from head coach Leroy Burrell: "Mikhail comes in and fills a need in the jumps as we are trying to build some depth in that area of our team. We feel that Mikhail has all the tools to compete at a very high level and I have no reservation in saying that he has the ability to be an NCAA meet qualifier with strong aspirations to compete at higher level."
ASHLEY NEW | MELISSA HIGH SCHOOL | MELISSA, TEXAS | DISTANCE
New, a distance runner from Melissa High School in Melissa, Texas, joins the Houston cross country and distance squad for the 2014-15 season. She placed in the top 15 at the Texas State Cross Country Championships during her high school career and placed in the top three at the 2A State track meet in the 3,200-meter run. New has recorded personal bests in the mile (5:16) the 3,200m (11:20.96) and the 5000m (18:35). She finished in the top three at the 2012 2A State meet in the 3,200m. New reached No. 32 in the state during the 2013 cross country season.
Quote from head cross country coach Steve Magness: "Ashley is an athlete who is going make an immediate impact on our women's Cross-Country team. She's had a great high school career, but beyond that is the type of runner that I look to recruit. She is very strong in the classroom and has a love for running and working hard that is rare to see at the high school level."
TONYECIA BURKS | KILGORE HIGH SCHOOL | KILGORE, TEXAS | SPRINTS & JUMPS
Burks, a sprinter and jumper from Kilgore High School in Kilgore, Texas, is the 2013 District 16-3A champion in the 400-meter dash, triple jump and long jump. She is also the Region III-3A 400m champion. Burks qualified for the 2013 state meet in the triple jump and 400m where she placed third in both events. Burks broke the 200m meet record at the 2013 Blackberry meet at Lindale High School. During her sophomore season, Burks was named the bi-district champion in the triple jump and 200-meter run. She has qualified for the regional meet all three years.
Quote from head coach Leroy Burrell: "Tonyecia is an outstanding athletes from Kilgore whom we have very high expectations. She is a multi-sport athlete having starred on the volleyball and basketball teams in high school. She competes in track starting halfway through the season every year at the completion of basketball season. With less than a half of normal season last year she placed third in the 3A state meet in the 400m at 57.30 and the triple jump at 38'10 last year. She has all of the physical tools and athleticism to blossom in our program."
BLAKE CONTRERAS | TIMBER CREEK HIGH SCHOOL | KELLER, TEXAS | DISTANCE
Contreras, a distance runner from Timber Creek High School in Keller, Texas, is one of the state's top cross country runners. Last season, he was the runner up at the Texas 5A District 4 cross country meet and finished in the top 10 at the UIL 5A Cross Country Championships.
Quote from head cross country coach Steve Magness: "Blake will be a real difference maker on our track and cross country teams. He had a breakthrough year and really showed he can not only perform on a state level but also a national level. His cross country performances, in particular his near-miss in qualifying for nationals, really showed the kind of talent and work ethic Blake brings to the table. He will really help us in the distance area and combining him with our young talented runners like Brian Barraza and Chris Ibarra will set us up nicely for the next few years."
LEAH MOORER | PFLUGERVILLE HIGH SCHOOL | PFLUGERVILLE, TEXAS | HIGH JUMP
Moorer, a high jumper from Pflugerville High School in Pflugerville, Texas, will add to the Cougars need in the women's field events. She is currently ranked No. 8 in the nation after jumping 5'-2" at the Carl Lewis High School Invitational. Moorer is the 2013 District 16-5A high jump champion. She cleared a personal best 5'-6" at the 2013 Carl Lewis High School Invitational, ranking No. 30 in the nation.
Quote from assistant coach Kyle Tellez: "Leah has potential to help us continue our great tradition of successful high jumpers. After graduating two of our top high jumpers this season, Leah will add to our group to make the program even stronger. She is a talented student athlete and we are so happy for her to be joining the team in the fall."
FELIPE VALENCIA | PALMVIEW HS | MISSION, TEXAS | THROWS
Valencia joins the Cougars throws squad from Palmview High School in Mission, Texas. He is the defending 2013 Texas 5A State Shot Put Champion and the Discus Texas 5A Area 29-30 Champion. This year, Valencia is currently ranked No. 2 in the nation and tops the state in the shot put with a personal best throw of 63'-6". He has won the Carl Lewis High School Invitational shot put competition in back-to-back years. In 2012, Valencia competed in the AAU Junior National Olympic Games where he placed fourth and was the Texas 5A State runner up in the shot put. He was also the 2011 District 30-5A shot put champion as a freshman.
Quote from assistant coach Will Blackburn: "Felipe will help solidify our throws program. He is a talented, nationally ranked high school shot putter that we feel can adjust to the 16-pound shot quickly. We are excited to have him apart of the Cougar Family."
