PIAA AAA State XC Champ and Foot Locker Finalist Neely Spence – who ran for Shippensburg High School last fall after a law was passed requiring PA school to allow participation of homeschoolers – will join the Shippensburg team again this spring. Spence had planned to run open and collegiate meets this spring in preparation for the Nike Outdoor Nationals in June, but a new regulation has changed her plans.
The interpretation is of NCAA Bylaw 13.11.1.2 pertaining to tryouts at the NCAA Division I level. The provision prohibits D-I athletes from competing against high school age athletes (NCAA prospects) in head-to-head competitions in a collegiate event. The provision was passed on December 12, 2006 but implementation was delayed until after the indoor season. The interpretaton was effective March 26, 2007.
This legislation, for the most part, will not allow any high school athlete to have a track season unless they compete for a high school.
This will be a season of many firsts for Spence, because while she has worked the Shippensburg HS Invitational, the PIAA District 3 and PIAA State Championships since she was 10, this will be her first opportunity to compete in those meets.
In her final open meets of the season, Spence set PRs of 17:20 for the 5000, 4:37.71 for the 1500, and 10:02.89 for the 3000.