UCF sending seven athletes to NCAA Track and Field Championship

ORLANDO, Fla. - Preparing for the NCAA Track and Field Outdoor Championship is much different for sophomore Rayniah Jones this season. 

"I’m ready for the pressure. I’m ready to go out there. I’m ready to perform and ready to execute," Jones said. 

Jones finished runner-up in the 100-meter hurdles as a freshman last year. 

She was also one of only two University of Central Florida athletes to qualify for the NCAA. There are seven Knights going this time around. 

"It wasn’t like I need to go out there and show them, ‘you guys can do it too’, like a speech.  It was just like, we practice every day. I did it, you can definitely do it too," Jones said. 

The Knights will compete in five events, which matches a program record. 

While many of the team members have never competed on this big a stage in their collegiate careers, they welcome the challenge. 

"We’re not going to make it bigger than what it is and get overwhelmed. We just need to do what we did to get there. If we do that, we’ll be successful," UCF head track and field coach, Dana Boone said.  

The NCAA Championship meet begins next Wednesday.