Tallahassee, FL - Represented by a 51-athlete contingent, the Florida State track & field teams will compete in the two-day UAB Blazer Invite to open the 2014 indoor season, with preliminary round and field event action set for Friday at the Birmingham (Ala.) Crossplex Arena.

The meet, which wraps up Saturday, will mark the Seminole debut of 11 athletes including highly-touted freshmen Michael Cherry (4x400 relay) and throwers Austin Droogsma and Chadrick DaCosta (shot put) on the men’s side. Freshman sprinter Kali Davis-White (60m dash, 300m dash, 4x400) and long sprinter Sydnee Over (500m, 4x400) headline the most acclaimed newcomers on the women’s side who will compete in garnet & gold for the first time.

“I’m interested to see what the newbies do,” Florida State men’s and women’s coach Bob Braman said. “We have so many new people who are conference-level people that may or may not be national level. When they put the uniform on for the first time in a meet like this, those people get a little more excited than the veterans do. The vets are trying to knock some rust off and see how their fall (training) program went, which is kind of what we expect from them.