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Photo by: Will Edmonds
Track Sends Most Qualifiers to NCAA Prelims in 5 Years
5/18/2023 9:52:00 PM | Track and Field
Eighteen members of the Syracuse track and field programs were selected for the NCAA East Preliminary, the most national qualifiers since 2018, when the squads qualified 19.
Twelve men will make the trip to Jacksonville, Florida next week to compete, while six women will represent the Orange, with events set to get underway on Wednesday.
As is common for the strong distance program, the 10,000-meter runs will feature the most members compete. Eight of the 18 qualifiers (four men, four women), will race in that event. Amanda Vestri headlines the group, who qualifies with the third-fastest time (32:08.26) in the field. The ACC bronze medalist in the event, Vestri will be joined by fellow All-ACC finishers Savannah Roark and Sophia Jacobs-Townsley, as well as Ellie Lawler in the women's race. That race will be at 9:10 p.m. on Thursday.
Paul O'Donnell, the ACC 10k runner-up, will lead a men's group that also features Assaf Harari, Nathan Lawler and Alex Comerford in the men's 10k, which concludes night one of the championships on Wednesday.
'Cuse will also have a pair of runners in each the 1,500, 5,000 and 400-meter hurdles. Nathan Henderson, who qualified for the NCAA Championships a year ago in the 1,500-meter run, will look to return this year. Teammate Karl Winter will also race in the event, which gets underway at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
The Orange will have a pair of men in the 400-meter hurdles. Fresh off All-ACC finishes in Raleigh last week, Xayvion Perkins and Elijah Mallard will race in the event at 8:20 p.m. on Wednesday.
The 5,000-meter runs will be the final individual races on Friday and Saturday. Noah Carey will race for the 'Cuse men, where he owns the 13th-best seed time in the East this season. Abigail Spiers will take to the track for the women on Saturday, making her the final competitor to start at the meet.
Another member of the squad looking to return to nationals is Jaheem Hayles in the 110-meter hurdles. He finished ninth at the NCAA Championships last season and enters this year's prelims with the 10th-best seed time in the East. His first-round race will be at 6 p.m. on Wednesday. The next night, Shaleah Colaire will race in the 100-meter hurdles first round.
The final prelim race on Wednesday before the 10k will be the 200-meter dash first-round competition. Trei Thorogood makes his first NCAA appearance in the event, after qualifying with a PR of 20.69 seconds earlier this year.
Kevin Robertson returns to the men's 3000-meter steeplechase prelims for the second year in a row. He'll run in the quarterfinals of that event at 5:40 p.m. on Wednesday.
The event is hosted by North Florida, and runs from May 24-27. Qualifiers who make it through will advance to the NCAA Championships in Austin, Texas two weeks later.
Twelve men will make the trip to Jacksonville, Florida next week to compete, while six women will represent the Orange, with events set to get underway on Wednesday.
As is common for the strong distance program, the 10,000-meter runs will feature the most members compete. Eight of the 18 qualifiers (four men, four women), will race in that event. Amanda Vestri headlines the group, who qualifies with the third-fastest time (32:08.26) in the field. The ACC bronze medalist in the event, Vestri will be joined by fellow All-ACC finishers Savannah Roark and Sophia Jacobs-Townsley, as well as Ellie Lawler in the women's race. That race will be at 9:10 p.m. on Thursday.
Paul O'Donnell, the ACC 10k runner-up, will lead a men's group that also features Assaf Harari, Nathan Lawler and Alex Comerford in the men's 10k, which concludes night one of the championships on Wednesday.
'Cuse will also have a pair of runners in each the 1,500, 5,000 and 400-meter hurdles. Nathan Henderson, who qualified for the NCAA Championships a year ago in the 1,500-meter run, will look to return this year. Teammate Karl Winter will also race in the event, which gets underway at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
The Orange will have a pair of men in the 400-meter hurdles. Fresh off All-ACC finishes in Raleigh last week, Xayvion Perkins and Elijah Mallard will race in the event at 8:20 p.m. on Wednesday.
The 5,000-meter runs will be the final individual races on Friday and Saturday. Noah Carey will race for the 'Cuse men, where he owns the 13th-best seed time in the East this season. Abigail Spiers will take to the track for the women on Saturday, making her the final competitor to start at the meet.
Another member of the squad looking to return to nationals is Jaheem Hayles in the 110-meter hurdles. He finished ninth at the NCAA Championships last season and enters this year's prelims with the 10th-best seed time in the East. His first-round race will be at 6 p.m. on Wednesday. The next night, Shaleah Colaire will race in the 100-meter hurdles first round.
The final prelim race on Wednesday before the 10k will be the 200-meter dash first-round competition. Trei Thorogood makes his first NCAA appearance in the event, after qualifying with a PR of 20.69 seconds earlier this year.
Kevin Robertson returns to the men's 3000-meter steeplechase prelims for the second year in a row. He'll run in the quarterfinals of that event at 5:40 p.m. on Wednesday.
The event is hosted by North Florida, and runs from May 24-27. Qualifiers who make it through will advance to the NCAA Championships in Austin, Texas two weeks later.
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