DENVER ? After last weekend’s NCAA Regional competition, the WAC will be sending 24 student athletes to the 2008 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Des Moines, Iowa, June 11-14, hosted by Drake University. A total of 1,088 student athletes will compete in this year’s NCAA Championships.
Six of the WAC schools have athletes who qualified for the 2008 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Members of Boise State, Fresno State, Hawai’i, Idaho, Louisiana Tech and Nevada have earned automatic qualifications into the meet, while several others have secured at-large selections. The top-five finishers in each individual event and the top-three finishers in the 4x100-meter and 4x400-meter relays earn automatic qualifications to the NCAA Championships, while at-large selections are considered after all automatic qualifications are in place.
Louisiana Tech has seven athletes participating next weekend, while the Boise State Broncos will also compete with seven, the most of any WAC schools. Fresno State has three (two women, one men), the Vandals of Idaho have three men participating and Hawai’i will have three women competing. Nevada will field one woman in the meet.
The Boise State men finished eighth, while the women finished 14th, in the NCAA West Regional Championships in Northridge, Calif., May 30-31. Junior Simon Wardhaugh took first in the men’s hammer throw with a toss of 221’ 1” (67.40m), winning the event by 5’ 5” (1.66m) over his nearest competitor, while junior Ryan Grinnell won the men’s triple jump with a leap of 52’ 6.5” (16.01m). Grinnell has also earned an at-large bid in the long jump, with his season-best leap of 25’ 7.25” (7.80m) at the WAC Championships, May 16, in Boise, Idaho. Jarrod Stevens finished third in the men’s hammer throw with a distance of 213’ 8” (65.14m), while junior Zacharias Arnos registered a season-best leap of 52’ 3.25” (15.93m) in the triple jump to finish third. Junior Savvas Diakonikolas placed third in the men’s long jump with a mark of 25’ 2” (7.67m). On the women’s side, junior Megan Olivetti topper her own school-record in the 100-meter hurdles, clocking a time of 13.75, while finishing fourth. Junior Eleni Kafourou was fourth in the women’s triple jump, posting a leap of 42’ 6.25” (12.96m). Kafourou has also earned an at-large bid in the long jump, with her season-best leap of 21’ 5.5” (6.54m) at the Bronco Twilight, May 2, in Boise, Idaho. Kafourou will be competing in her second-straight NCAA Outdoor Championships in both events.
Fresno State freshman Gary Lee earned an automatic berth to the NCAA Championships with his fourth place finish in the West Regional men’s long jump, registering a mark of 25’ 1.25” (7.65m). On the women’s side, freshman Rosario Sanchez threw a personal-best and Bulldog freshman record 52’ 5.25” (15.98m) in the shot put to place fourth in the event. Junior Sharon Ayala received an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships in the women’s hammer throw with her previous personal-best toss of 203’ 4” (61.98m) at the Mt. SAC Relays, April 17, in Azusa, Calif.
Hawai’i senior Annett Wichmann qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the heptathlon after earning an automatic qualifying score of 5,521 points and the Mt. SAC Multi-Events competition, April 16-17, in Azusa, Calif. Wichmann will be competing in her third-straight NCAA Outdoor Championships, after placing ninth in the heptathlon last season and 17th in 2006. Sophomore Amber Kaufman and junior Emily Sheppard earned at-large bids in the women’s high jump with their personal-best performances at the WAC Championships, May 17, in Boise, Idaho. Kaufman’s school-record leap of 6’ 0.5” (1.84m) and Sheppard’s mark of 5’ 11.25” (1.81m) secured their first-ever appearances in the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Idaho senior Russ Winger clinched a spot in his third-consecutive NCAA Outdoor Championship meet, earning top-five finishes in two events at the NCAA West Regional competition. Winger finished third in the men’s shot put with a toss of 65’ 0.5” (19.82m), and also placed third in the discus with a launch of 194’ 6” (59.28m) to notch a spot in his second event at the NCAA Championships. Senior Marcus Mattox broke his own school record and earned his first-ever trip to the NCAA Outdoor Championships with a lifetime-best throw of 212’ 3” (64.70m) in the men’s hammer throw. Junior Elvie Williams earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships in the men’s long jump with his previous personal-best leap of 26’ 0.75” (7.94m) at the Bronco Twilight, May 2, in Boise, Idaho.
Louisiana Tech sophomore Larry Jones earned an automatic berth to the NCAA Championships with his fourth place finish in the Mideast Regional men’s javelin throw with a career-best toss of 219’ 4” (66.86m), also breaking the Bulldog school record. The men’s 4x100-meter relay team of junior Mike Coleman, sophomore Albert Fullwood and freshmen Josh Harvey and Terry Carter turned in a season-best time of 39.66, finishing second over teams from Arkansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Indiana, Mississippi State and LSU to advance to the NCAA Championships. On the women’s side, junior Nadia Alexander finished fourth in the shot put with a toss of 54’ 4.5” (16.57m), while junior Phelecia Reynolds placed fifth in the discus with a mark of 169’ 3” (51.60m), notching their spots in the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Nevada senior Inger Appanaitis finished third at the West Regional competition in the women’s javelin throw, launching a throw of 158’ 7” (48.35m) to earn her automatic qualification to the 2008 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Appanaitis will be competing in her second-ever NCAA Outdoor Championships in the javelin throw, as she finished 17th as a sophomore in 2006.
Tickets for the 2008 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships can be purchased as either All-Session passes or Single-Session tickets. Costs for All-Session passes are $60.00, while Single-Session tickets are $15.00 for the Wednesday and Thursday sessions and $25.00 for the Friday and Saturday sessions. Tickets can be purchased by accessing the Drake Bulldogs website at www.godrakebulldogs.com, or by calling 515-271-3791.
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