Warren Hazel is ready for his close up

Warren Hazel will be one of two Salukis making their NCAA Championship debut this weekend at the 2017 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships in College Station, Texas.

Hazel's goal headed into his first national meet is simply to begin by making it to Saturday's final.

"Going into nationals, my first goal is to just make it to the finals," Hazel said. "After that, I will talk with my coach and work it out from there."

If he is able to advance to Saturday's final, he would become the first Saluki male since Michael Franks in 1985 to advance to the finals of the 400m. Franks went on to win the NCAA title.

Hazel came to Southern Illinois University with extensive experience running for the St. Kitts and Nevis national team. Upon arrival, he immediately made his presence felt within the Missouri Valley Conference, winning the 2016 MVC 400m Outdoor Championship.

"Warren has competed against some of the better quarter milers in the country," Raske said. "Though he is fairly young in terms of training age and experience, we are looking for him to compete as a veteran."

Asked how he plans to deal with any pre-race jitters associated with making his NCAA Championship debut, Hazel admitted that nerves prior to a race are nothing new.

"I'm usually pretty nervous," Hazel said. "This is a really high-caliber meet so before the race I'll just try to calm myself down and let myself know that I am capable of doing what I am about to do."

One needs to look no further than his performance at the U-23 NACAC Championships this past summer to see just how capable the Old Roads, St. Kitts native is as a quarter miler.

Hazel opened the event by finishing second in his heat with a time of 46.65. He advanced to a stacked final that featured five current or former DI runners, two DII National Champions including the 2016 DII 400m National Champion, as well as the 2015 National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) 400m National Champion.

"I would say (the 2016) NACACs was around the same caliber of meet as nationals because there were a lot of guys that have competed at the NCAA Division I level at that meet," Hazel said. "It was on the same level as what I'm about to compete at."

Racing out of lane six, Hazel took home bronze in record-setting fashion. He shattered the St. Kitts and Nevis 400m record with a time of 45.81, breaking a national record that had stood for 14 years. Michael Cherry, who finished one spot ahead of Hazel with a time of 45.50, is also in Friday night's 400m field, representing LSU.

The summer prior to NACACs, Hazel earned bronze in the 200m at the CARIFTA games. The CARIFTA games are an annual international youth athletics event started in 1972 for the member states of the Caribbean Free Trade Association. The event has long been considered a showcase of world class talent, with one needing to look no further for an example than the 2004 games in which a 17-year old Usain Bolt broke the World Junior 200m record with a time of 19.93.

With his nation's capital Basseterre serving as hosts, Hazel claimed a spot on the podium at the 2015 CARIFTA Games with a third place finish in the 200m. The winner of that race, Mario Burke, is also a national qualifier this year and will run the 60m for Houston at the national meet.

One constant of Hazel's success has been his competitive drive.

"His best quality, in my opinion, is his ability to respond to the competition," Raske said. "He's a great competitor and he's ready to compete against the best of the best."

Hazel will get his chance against the NCAA's best on Friday, March 10 at the 2017 NCAA Indoor Championships in College Station, Texas. The 400m prelims begin at 6:35 p.m.

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