@MIZ_TrackField Qualifies Record Group into NCAA Preliminary Round
5/20/2016 12:30:00 PM | Track & Field
32 Tigers will head to Lawrence next week for a chance to move on to Eugene
COLUMBIA, Mo - Mizzou Track & Field's record-setting season will continue for another week, as the program sends a record 32 athletes to the NCAA Championships West Preliminary Round (May 26-28) in Lawrence, Kansas. There, the 13 men and 19 women will vie for a spot at the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Oregon, on June 8-11. In all, the Tigers have 42 entries into the meet, a program high after the 30 entries in 2012 and 2015. This comes after a couple of record weeks for the men's team, as they claime their highest finish ever at the SEC Championships (8th) and the highest national ranking in program history (No. 19).
ABOUT THE MEET
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Qualification into the NCAA Preliminary Round is based on the top 48 individual rankings, top 24 relays, in each region. Only the top 12 in each event will advance into the finals in Eugene. Events at Rock Chalk Park in Lawrence, Kansas, will begin on Thursday, May 26, and go through Saturday, May 28.
Live Broadcast (Courtesy of KU Athletics)
Thursday - Starting at 4:25 p.m. CT
Friday - Starting at 4:55 p.m. CT
Saturday - Starting at 5:55 p.m. CT
WHITAKER ALREADY THROUGH TO EUGENE
One Tiger can rest easy this week, however, as senior Ser Whitaker already booked his ticket to the NCAA Championships for the decathlon. The men's decathlon and women's heptathlon are the only events that forego the preliminary round process, taking the top 24 ranked athletes from across the country directly into the championship final. Whitaker claimed his spot after a PR performance during the SEC Championships, tallying up a total of 7488 points to place sixth in the conference. That performance also moved him up into No. 5 on Mizzou's All-Time Top Ten.
Whitaker is the first Mizzou athlete to qualify in the combined events since Lars Rise, who had a streak of All-American finishes from 2008-2011.
#MIZTF NOTES
- This will be the fourth consecutive preliminary round competition for seniors Markesh Woodson and Tony Carodine, who both enter the week ranked in the top ten of their respective events.
- Woodson, already a five-time All-American between the indoor and outdoor seasons, ranks third in the west region and seventh in the NCAA for the 100m dash. His qualifying time was also a new PR (10.13), and the second-fastest time in school history.
- Carodine enters the week ranked tenth in the region for the triple jump after hitting a new PR of 15.86 (52-0.50).
- Woodson and Carodine are two of ten Tigers entering the competition ranked in the top ten of their fields. Leading that list is freshman Kahmari Montgomery, who holds the No. 2 time in the 400m dash in the NCAA after his title-winning run at the SEC Championships (45.13). Montgomery has emerged as one of the top young sprinters in the world this season, ranked second among world juniors and 13th overall with that time. Undefeated so far this season in the event, he enters the regional competition with two SEC titles already under his belt in both the indoor and outdoor 400m dashes.
- On the women's side, junior Valerie Thames will enter her first NCAA West Preliminary Round ranked ninth in the 400m hurdles. Thames is riding quite a bit of momentum after the SEC Championships, where she clocked four school records in the 100m hurdles (13.18), 400m hurdles (57.16), and 4x400m relay (3:34.20). Her record time in the 100m hurdles has her ranked 15th in the west region.
- Other top ten qualifiers include junior Reinhard Van Zyl (No. 5, javelin), freshman Matthew Ludwig (No. 6, pole vault), sophomore John Warren (No. 7, triple jump), sophomore Alex Pascal (No. 8, javelin), sophomore Karissa Schweizer (No. 8, 5000m), and senior Will Crocker (No. 10, 1500m).
- Among the historical notes for next week's qualifiers is the men's and women's 4x100m relay squads, and the women's 4x400m. This is only the second time a men's relay has qualified for the preliminary round, after the 4x400m squad of Mark Hughes, Aaron Dixon, Tucker Bounds, and Chris Davis made the cut in 2011.
- For the women, though, this is a first for both teams, as no Mizzou women's relay has ever advanced into the preliminary round since the meet started in 2010. It's been a record setting season for both relays, resetting school records on multiple occasions including the SEC Championships. The 4x100m squad enters the competition ranked 11th in the region (44.40), while the 4x400m ranks 13th (3:34.20).
#MIZTF FIRST-TIME QUALIFIERS
- Kahmari Montgomery, Fr. - 200m Dash, 400m Dash
- Ollie Lockley, Jr. - 10k Run
- Matthew Ludwig, Fr. - Pole Vault
- Reinhard Van Zyl, Jr. - Javelin
- Sandrae Farquharson, Jr. - 400m Dash
- Maya Cody, Fr. - 400m Dash
- Valeska Halamicek, So. - 800m Run
- Teylar Adelsberger, Jr. - 3000m Steeplechase
- Jamie Kempfer, Fr. - 10k Run
- Valerie Thames, Jr. - 100m Hurdles, 400m Hurdles
- Rayce Albino, Fr. - Pole Vault
- Lynnsey Brim, Jr. - Long Jump
- Danielle Williams, Sr. - Triple Jump
- Gabi Jacobs, Fr. - Discus
#MIZTF RETURNING NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS QUALIFIERS
- Markesh Woodson - 100m Dash (2013, 2015)
- John Warren - Triple Jump (2015)
- Alex Pascal - Javelin (2015)
- Kaitlyn Fischer - 10k Run (2014)
Events in Lawrence, Kansas, will begin on Thursday (May 26) and run through Saturday (May 28). For the latest on your Tigers, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Twitter @MIZ_TrackField.
#MIZTF NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS WEST PRELIMINARY ROUND QUALIFIERS - MEN
| EVENT | ATHLETE (RANK - QUALIFYING MARK) |
| 100m Dash | Markesh Woodson (No. 3 - 10.13) |
| 200m Dash | Kahmari Montgomery (No. 18 - 20.80) |
| Markesh Woodson (No. 23 - 20.85) | |
| 400m Dash | Kahmari Montgomery (No. 2 - 45.13) |
| 1500m Run | Will Crocker (No. 10 - 3:42.30) |
| 10,000m Run | Ollie Lockley (No. 48 - 29:41.88) |
| 3k Steeplechase | Sam Dickerson (No. 26 - 8:52.50) |
| 4x100m | (No. 12 - 39.87) |
| Pole Vault | Matthew Ludwig (No. 6 - 5.46m // 17-11) |
| Long Jump | John Warren (No. 19 - 7.65m // 25-1.25) |
| Triple Jump | John Warren (No. 7 - 15.98m // 52-5.25) |
| Tony Carodine (No. 10 - 15.86m // 52-0.50) | |
| Javelin | Reinhard Van Zyl (No. 5 - 75.91m // 249-0) |
| Alex Pascal (No. 8 - 73.52m // 241-2) |
#MIZTF NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS WEST PRELIMINARY ROUND QUALIFIERS - WOMEN
| EVENT | ATHLETE (RANK - QUALIFYING MARK) |
| 100m Dash | LaQuisha Jackson (No. 24 - 11.47) |
| 200m Dash | LaQuisha Jackson (No. 13 - 23.10) |
| 400m Dash | Sandrae Farquharson (No. 22 - 53.70) |
| Maya Cody (No. 44 - 54.49) | |
| 800m Run | Valeska Halamicek (No. 35 - 2:07.57) |
| 5000m Run | Karissa Schweizer (No. 8 - 15:58.09) |
| 10,000m Run | Kaitlyn Fischer (No. 23 - 34:10.30) |
| Jamie Kempfer (No. 27 - 34:13.68) | |
| 100m Hurdles | Valerie Thames (No. 15 - 13.18) |
| Alyssa Felton (No. 34 - 13.49) | |
| 400m Hurdles | Valerie Thames (No. 9 - 57.16) |
| 3k Steeplechase | Teylar Adelsberger (No. 22 - 10:12.39) |
| 4x100m | (No. 11 - 44.40) |
| 4x400m | (No. 13 - 3:34.20) |
| Pole Vault | Alyssa Applebee (No. 13 - 4.19m // 13-9) |
| Rayce Albino (No. 46 - 4.04m // 13-3) | |
| Long Jump | Lynnsey Brim (No. 36 - 6.02m // 19-9) |
| Triple Jump | Danielle Williams (No. 48 - 12.43m // 40-9.50) |
| Discus | Gabi Jacobs (No. 22 - 53.24m // 174-8) |
Players Mentioned
