CHARLESTON, S.C. – The Citadel's track and field teams are excited to welcome an additional seven men and four women to the 2017 signing class, announced Thursday by head coach Jody Huddleston.
                                                           
Three men and three women previously signed their National Letters of Intent (NLI) during the early signing period for a total of 17 incoming cadet-athletes this season. This year's additions cover a total of seven states with South Carolina being the home to seven of the new Bulldogs.
 
"We are very excited about this year's freshman class," said Coach Huddleston. "The coaching staff has worked very hard to bring in a very talented group of both men and women. This year's class will strengthen our sprints, jumps and distance events which will compliment a very strong throws group that we have developed over the past few years. Overall this recruiting class will give us much more depth across the board and we are very excited to get to work with these young men and women this year."
 
For the men, sprinters Liam Martin, Alex Revell and Timiebi Ogobri should all make an immediate impact in the 100-meter and 200-meter races and have a chance at being on both relay teams. The Citadel is bringing in three pole vaulters, Sam Blumer, Devin Merrick and Lindsay Pierce, that should all make the travel squad next year and have a legitimate shot of scoring in the Southern Conference as freshmen. High jumper D'Andre Adams should also make an immediate impact in order to replace two seniors who graduated this year.
 
Early signees Austin St. John and Jeremy Shipley have great opportunity to climb into the team's top-seven as freshmen next year in distance. Shipley will make an immediate impact and add depth to the middle distance squad focusing on the 800 meters, and St. John will focus on the 3,000 meters and 5,000 meters during the indoor and outdoor seasons. Harrison Mansell is projected to excel with the Bulldogs' jump squad after consistently jumping 6 feet, 4 inches during his high school career. 
 
For the women, The Citadel brings in Samantha Engel, a pole vaulter that should do well for the Bulldogs not only in the pole vault but also as a sprinter. Joie Royer runs the 100-meter dash, 200-meter race and 400 meters and is expected to help with both relay teams.
 
Tiffany Hill and Tamia Burch will add much needed depth to the Bulldogs' sprint squad, as both are expected to compete in the 100 meters, 200 meters and 400 meters as well as the relay teams. Amber Opp, Casey Miller and Kenslee Padgett will add some young depth to the cross country team, and all have great opportunity to find a spot in the team's top-seven as freshmen next year.  
 
Men
D'Andre Adams (Union Pines High School) – Carthage, North Carolina – 6-0 for high jump and 39-5 for triple jump
 
Sam Blumer (Eastside High School) – Greenville, South Carolina – 15-0 for pole vault
 
Harrison Mansell (Fellowship Christian School) – Roswell, Georgia – 6-4 for high jump
 
Liam Martin (St Joseph's Catholic School) – Greenville, South Carolina – 11.34 for 100 meters, 22.37 for 200 meters, and 50.30 for 400 meters
 
Devin Merrick (West Florence High School) – Florence, South Carolina – 13-6 for pole vault
 
Timiebi Ogobri (South Lakes High School) – Reston, Virginia – 11.07 for 100 meters, 22.70 for 200 meters, and 51.27 for 400 meters
 
Lindsay Pierce (Camden High School) – Camden, South Carolina – 14-0 for pole vault
 
Alex Revell (Dorman High School) – Spartanburg, South Carolina – 10.96 for 100 meters, 22.55 for 200 meters, and 50.93 for 400 meters
 
Austin St. John (Indian Land High School) – Indian Land, South Carolina – 16:30 for 5,000 meters and 10:29 for the 3,200 meters
 
Jeremy Shipley (Hillsborough High School) – Hillsborough, New Jersey – 16:32 for 5,000 meters, 10:13 for the 3,200 meters, and 1:57 for 800 meters
 
Women
Tamia Burch (Harding University) – Charlotte, North Carolina – 12.74 for the 100 meters, 27.14 for the 200 meters, 1:05 for the 400 meters, and 8.23 in the 60 meters
 
Samantha Engel (El Dorado High School) – Placerville, California – 12-0 for pole vault, 12.76 for 100 meters, and 16-7 for long jump
 
Tiffany Hill (Harding University) – Charlotte, North Carolina – 12.74 for the 100 meters, 26.98 for the 200 meters, 1:04 for the 400 meters and 8.21 in the 60 meters
 
Casey Miller (Science Hill High School) – Johnson City, Tennessee – 20:20 for 5,000 meters, 2:28 for 800 meters, 8:23 for 2,000-meter steeple, and 12:04 for 3,200 meters
 
Amber Opp (Draughn High School) – Morgantown, North Carolina – runs 19:17 for 5,000 meters, 5:43 for 1,600 meters, and 2:40 for 800 meters
 
Kenslee Padgett (Landrum High School) – Landrum, South Carolina – 20:06 for 5,000 meters, 6:09 for 1,600 meters, and 13:29 for 3,200 meters
 
Joie Royer (Arabia Mountain High School) – Stone Mountain, Georgia – 56.05 for 400 meters, 25.12 for 200 meters, and 12.48 for 100 meters
 
For more information on The Citadel track and field and teams, follow @CitadelOlympic or visit CitadelSports.com.