THIS WEEK: The SMU track and field team looks to three-peat as outdoor conference champions this weekend at the American Athletic Conference Championship, in Orlando, Fla. The four-day championship, hosted by UCF, opens Thursday at 11 a.m. ET/10 CT, before wrapping up Sunday.

THIRD TIME'S THE CHARM: Since the creation of the American Athletic Conference, the SMU track and field team has won both of the outdoor championships. During the inaugural championship in 2014, the Mustangs downed UCF by 14.6 points to earn the program's first conference title. Last season, SMU successfully defended its championship, edging host-school Connecticut by six points.

REPRESENTING SMU: SMU will send a roster of 18 student-athletes to Florida. Heat Sheets will be released Tuesday night.

Distance: Justine Anthony, Holly Archer, Rebekah Bosler, Anneke Grogan, Madison Pyle, Agnes Sjostrom, Karoline Skatteboe, Cassidy Webber, Michelle Gaye, Shanoah Souza
Sprints: Latessa Johnson, Craishia Washington
Throws: Jacquetta Cannon, Tochi Nlemchi, Daniella Murchison
Jumps: Hannah Cogsil
Multi: Lucija Cvitanovic, Anna Novosadova (Jumps/Multi)

SMU vs. THE AMERICAN: The Mustangs boast 10 top-five student-athletes in nine events in the American Athletic Conference, with five leading their respective events. On the track, Latessa Johnson is No. 1 in the conference in both the 100m and 200m dashes, while Karoline Skatteboe leads in the 3000m steeplechase. In field events, Tochi Nlemchi sits atop the conference in the shotput. Senior Lucija Cvitanovic is No. 1 in the AAC in the heptathlon.

LATEST RANKINGS: Of 192 teams ranked in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) poll, SMU sits at 81. Excluding SMU, six other teams in the American Athletic Conference are ranked, with four inside the top 80. Cincinnati leads the field at 42nd, while Memphis and East Carolina claim 71st and 73rd, respectively. Tulane sits at 80th.

WATCH LIVE: All four days will be carried live on The American Digital Network. It's a free stream and available on all desktop/tablet/mobile devices as well as Roku. At the end of each day, highlights will be uploaded to TheAmerican.org and YouTube.

Thursday, May 12: 11 a.m. ET/10 CT start -- http://theamerican.org/watch/?Live=179
Friday, May 13: 10 a.m. ET/9 CT start -- http://theamerican.org/watch/?Live=180
Saturday, May 14: 12:30 p.m. ET/11:30 CT start -- http://theamerican.org/watch/?Live=181
Sunday, May 15: 2:30 p.m. ET/1:30 pm CT start -- http://theamerican.org/watch/?Live=182

LAST TIME OUT: SMU Track and Field throwers wrapped up the regular season at the Texas State-hosted Bobcat Classic at the Bobcat Track and Field Stadium. In the hammer throw, Jacquetta Cannon led the Mustangs with a 49.00-meter throw to claim first place in her respective flight, while tallying a sixth-place finish overall. Freshman Daniella Murchison shattered her collegiate record, using a PR heave of 40.78m. The Port Isabel, Texas, native finished sixth in flight one and 15th overall.

Cathy Casey AT THE HELM: Cathy Casey was named the track and field head coach in June 2015 after longtime coach Dave Wollman stepped down. Casey is no stranger to SMU, as she is in her 15th year on the Hilltop. In 2005, she was named the cross country head coach, while also serving as an assistant track and field coach, overseeing the middle- and long-distance corps. Last year, SMU repeated as American Athletic Conference Outdoor Champions, with Casey's distance crew playing a key role in the team's success. The Mustangs swept the 3,000m steeplechase (Karoline Skatteboe, 1st; Shanoah Souza, 2nd; Agnes Sjostrom, 3rd) and had medalists in two other distance events (Souza, 3rd, 5,000m; Caitlin Keen, 3rd; 10,000m).

UP NEXT: Following The American Conference Championship, qualifying Mustangs will compete in the NCAA West Regional in Lawrence, Kan. For each individual event contested at each of the Preliminary Round sites, the top 48 declared student-athletes will be accepted into the competition. For each relay event, the top 24 declared relay teams will be accepted into the competition. Combined events (Heptathlon and Decathlon), are not contested at the Preliminary Round sites.

--SMUMustangs.com--