Beverly Burnett is already in a select group of Appalachian State athletes. She'll try to join an even more elusive club this weekend. The Appalachian State shot putter will compete in the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships Thursday at Sacramento State (Calif.). She was a provisional qualifier after finishing eighth in the East Regional in New York two weeks ago. That's tough enough to do. On Thursday, she'll try to become an All-American, which would put her in the same company as distance runner Mary Jayne Harrelson and hurdler Melissa Morrison. To do that, Burnett will likely have to improve on her top throw, which is 50-feet, 10 inches. She did that at the conference meet after going into that meet with a top throw of 48-10 3/4. Burnett, a junior from Graham, is seeded 25th in the event. "I think her chances are good," Mountaineers coach John Weaver said. "She's throwing enough distance to certainly be capable of making the final. "Whether she can win or not, that's why they have the contest." Should Burnett qualify for the finals, she would be an All-American. "The first goal is to make it to the final and be an All-American," Weaver said. "She has to get to the final and then move up." Burnett is the lone Mountaineer at the event. It is also her first time competing in the nationals. She and Weaver went out to Sacramento Tuesday to get used to the changes in time and to get a workout in at the site of the meet. Weaver said going to the West Coast from the East Coast is easier than going the opposite direction. He said Burnett will be able to get some practice time in today before she has to compete. Should she reach the finals, she'll compete Saturday. "The first time is always uneasy, but she's an easy-going kind of person with a solid outlook on everything she does," Weaver said. "I don't think she'll let it get away from her. Basically, she is now going to compete against the event." There are three other Southern Conference athletes participating in the event. Distance runner Shannon Wommack from Chattanooga ran a personal best of 10 minutes, 19:27 seconds in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Mideast Regional in Terre Haute Indiana. Wommack also claimed her third SoCon championship in four years in that event. Wommack's teammate, Kathleen Turchin, qualified with an at-large bid in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 16:37.26. UNC Greensboro's Charles Jones finished fifth in the triple jump.