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ITHACA, N.Y. – Four Big Red track and field athletes have a shot at a national title this week when the NCAA Outdoor Championships begin in Des Moines, Iowa.

Two men's track athletes and two women will be making the trip to the central time zone, seeking their first national crowns.

The most experienced athlete in terms of national exposure is sophomore high jumper Montez Blair. He took part in the NCAA Indoor Championships back in March and finished in ninth place.

Blair, in his first year at Cornell, earned his spot in the Outdoor NCAAs thanks to an eighth-place jump at the NCAA East Regional in Jacksonville, Fla., two weeks ago. His height of 7' 2 1/2” was good enough to put him in the top 12 at that meet, and he is already the school record holder with a jump of 7' 3 1/4”.

“He has transitioned from where he was before to Cornell really well,” men's track coach Nathan Taylor said. “He's improved about four inches from what he did in high school, and he was already very good in high school.”

Blair's high jump will begin at 6:30 p.m. eastern on Thursday.

Also taking part on the men's side is decathlete Nick Huber, whose huge 7,632-point performance at the Outdoor Heptagonal Championships was plenty good to book his ticket to Iowa. Huber, one of the team's co-captains, is the school record holder in all three men's multi events and a six-time Ivy League champion.

“The biggest thing for Nick is he's not afraid to push himself and he loves to compete,” Taylor said. “He wears it on his sleeve how much he loves to compete.”

Huber will begin the decathlon at 1 p.m. on Wednesday.

For the Big Red women, the distance-running tandem of juniors Katie Kellner and Genna Hartung will try their hand at a national title in the 10K and the 3K steeplechase, respectively.

Kellner placed third at the NCAA East Regional two weeks ago after being seeded as the top runner in the region. She won an Outdoor Heptagonal title this year and is the school record holder in the 10K. Her 10K race will be held at 9:45 p.m. eastern on Thursday.

Hartung, whose steeplechase time of 10:10.55 broke the school record two weeks ago, will be vying for a national championship at 8:45 p.m. on Wednesday. If she places high enough in that semifinal race, the championship run will be held at 7:30 p.m. eastern on Friday. Hartung claimed the ECAC Outdoor steeplechase title earlier in the year.

“They've done so much together, I wanted for them to go to their first NCAA meet together,” assistant track coach Artie Smith said. “It's a very fitting ending to what's been a great year for both of them. From day one coming back on campus, they've set a great tone for the whole team.”