If some long jumpers may just feel it when they’ve had one heck of a leap, Rushetta Baker opts to hear it.

From the crowd.

They’ll let out a big &uot;Ooooooo&uot; when anyone does something remarkable at a track meet, and to the senior Alcorn State jumper, that sound is as much music to her ears as a judge telling her she’s won first place.

She heard it at the Southwestern Athletic Conference meet when her jump not only won it but qualified her for the regional meet.

&uot;I always know by the crowd’s reaction,&uot; Baker said. &uot;That’s how I know when I have a good job. I knew I did pretty good (at SWAC) by the crowd’s reaction.&uot;

The crowd reaction was right on the money. Her jump of 20-6 1/4 was good enough for this weekend’s Mid-East Regional Track and Field Championship on the campus of Indiana University.

And Baker &045; one of four from Alcorn participating in the regional meet &045; knows just how much the crowd will make some serious noise this weekend with everyone gunning for a shot at the national meet next month at Sacramento, Calif.

The senior who was recruited to Alcorn for both basketball and track got to the regional meet last year and wants to make amends this year.

&uot;I expect to do better this time,&uot; she said. &uot;I feel more confident. That’s the only difference. I’m not really (nervous) because I’m used to competing in big track meets with a lot of competition.&uot;

Baker is the only experienced of the four Alcorn will take to the regional meet this weekend. The Independence, La., native will team up with throwers Vanessa Thomas and Brandon Franklin and hurdler Nate Hughes with the big ticket of making the state meet on the line.

&uot;I took Brandon to some big-time meets last year,&uot; Alcorn first-year head track coach Herman Williamson said. &uot;He got a feel for the fire last year. For Vanessa, I think she kind of got acclimated early. But she’s about to get a taste of the big time now. She’s got a chance to make it to the big dance. I think all of them have a great shot.&uot;

Rankings-wise, Baker has the best shot since she’s sitting eight in the rankings with her jump from the SWAC meet. It went down at 6.25 meters (NCAA doesn’t observe metric measurements) and is in a logjam for spots four through nine.

She’s sandwiched between LSU’s Karmen Payne at 6.30 meters and Arkansas’s Beyonka Marshall at 6.24 meters. Tianna Madison of Tennessee is way out in front at 6.92 meters.

But Baker is jumping better now &045; she was landing in the 19s early on before hitting her first 20 at the Ole Miss meet.

&uot;I don’t really have a (goal) &045; I just want to do the best of my ability,&uot; Baker said. &uot;My approach is the only thing (I’m working on). I’ve been having a lot of problems with it, but it’s getting better and more consistent now.&uot;

Then it’s the three newcomers to the regional meet, including two throwers making it for the first time. For Thomas, a freshman out of Hattiesburg, she worked with Franklin and Williamson when she first arrived in the spring on discus and getting a better technique down.

The kid took the constructive criticism well &045; she threw 142-10 to win the SWAC championship and qualify for regionals.

&uot;They’ve been really working with me,&uot; Thomas said. &uot;Brandon and Coach have been working with me and certain things I’ve been doing wrong. When they first saw me throw, Brandon was like, ‘What are you doing? That’s not how you throw.’

&uot;He basically broke everything down for me, showing me things I was doing wrong. I’m getting more height on the discus now.&uot;

It was enough help from Franklin to steer Thomas in the right direction at getting the best throw possible. Thomas improved her throws by almost 15 feet after getting the technique down earlier in the season.

&uot;She’s all right,&uot; Franklin said. &uot;She had some things she needed to fix, and we got those things corrected. She definitely got it together in the last meet, the conference meet.&uot;

Thomas just made the cut at 25th out of the 25 chosen for the regional meet. She’s right behind Western Kentucky’s Courtney Wood at 43.90 meters (Thomas’ throw is 43.25 meters) with Beth Mallory of Alabama heading up the list at 57.79 meters.

Franklin is in similar position in the shot put, sitting 33rd out of 33 making the cut for the regionals. His mark of 51-14 (15.47 meters) from the SWAC meet got him but behind Arkansas State’s Isaiah Rucker in 32nd at 16.63 meters.

Hughes, the standout receiver in football, will go in the 400 hurdles after he won the SWAC title, lowered his time just a bit at the Louisiana Tech meet at 52.5 seconds and dropped it even lower at Georgia Tech at 52.4 seconds.

Hughes is sitting 22nd out of 24 qualified for the meet. LSU speedster Bennie Brazell is leading at 48.54 seconds.

&uot;I’m more of a strong starter &045; the first 200, really the first 300,&uot; Hughes said. &uot;It’s that last 100. After you cross the last hurdle, it’s a 40-meter spring to the finish line. It’s hard. I used the love the 300 hurdles. I used to dominate that.&uot;