JACKSONVILLE—A trip to Florida holds a special meaning for Northwestern State jumper Randy Kelly.

Kelly is a junior from Blythewood, SC, a suburb of Columbia. Blythewood is four and a half hours away from Jacksonville, so it will be a homecoming of sorts for Kelly.

"It's nice to have a lot of family coming to this meet," Kelly said. "It will be nice to compete in front of my family since I haven't seen them in a while."

The South Carolina native is making his third consecutive trip to the NCAA East First Round, as he leads the men into the first round, as they aim to make a trip to nationals in Eugene, Oregon, beginning Wednesday.

"Being a veteran at this meet, I definitely think I have a leg up," Kelly said. "Going in, really motivated, knowing what I can do in this situation."

Kelly, along with Roy Morris in the long jump, as well as the 4x100 relay—which consists of Galen Loyd, Mikkel Johansson, Elijah Rowe, Tavis Wilson, Desmond Duncan and Tajae Francis—are headed to the state of Florida for the first round for Northwestern State on the men's side.

The men kicks the meet off with Morris in the long jump at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday, while Kelly opens up for the Demons in the high jump at 2:30 p.m. on Friday, while the men's 4x100 runs at 4 p.m.

Last season, the Demons 4x100 relay reached the nationals in Eugene.

Fans who cannot be at the Visit Jax Track at Hodges Stadium in person can view the events on ESPN+ both days.

Kelly recorded the best high jump in the Southland Conference outdoor season, clearing 7-0.25 at the Leon Johnson NSU Invitational last month, tied for the 19^th-best mark in the East Region.

He is coming off a fourth-place finish at the SLC meet, clearing 6-8.25.

Kelly isn't the only one who is making the trip close to home, as Wilson, a Tampa native, makes the trek over to Jacksonville, a three-hour drive from his hometown.

Wilson is competing at the East First Rounds as a member of the 4x100 relay, which is coming off a close race at the conference meet, as he and his relay with Loyd, Johansson and Rowe, placed second with a time of 39.53.

Morris is in the midst of a sensational freshman season for the Demons in the long jump. He nearly made the podium at the SLC Championships, placing fourth despite recording the second-best jump of the season at 24-7.75.

"The more you go to these kinds of meets, the more comfortable you get," head coach Mike Heimerman said. "That is why we go to all the big meets we can, so when we get to the conference meet, you should be able to handle the pressure a little but more. With Roy and (fellow freshman) Teodora (Samac) as true freshmen going to this meet, it's good for them with their career and where we think their career should go."

His best jump of the season just happens to be the longest jump of the entire outdoor season when he jumped at 24-11.25 in front of the home fans at the Leon Johnson NSU Invitational.

He ranks 36^th in the event going into the first round, but only four of the athletes ahead of Morris are freshmen as well.

While Kelly and Wilson are competing in front of some family and friends, both of them as well as Morris and the rest of the 4x100 relay team can take a step forward and punch tickets to nationals, beginning Wednesday.