Facebook Photo Gallery

AUSTIN, Texas — A total of 15 Cougars qualified for the NCAA Track and Field Championships in 17 entries after the three-day 2017 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field West Preliminaries concluded Saturday.

“I’m really proud of the way our student-athletes rose to the occasion,” BYU head coach Ed Eyestone said. “As a combined program, this is the most men and women we’ve had qualify for nationals in the four years I’ve been head coach.”

Tatenda Tsumba and Clayton Young both punched their second tickets to nationals on Saturday. Tsumba ran the 100m in 10.16 seconds for ninth place on Friday before also advancing in the 200m with a time of 20:42. Young clocked in a 14:14.47 in the 5000m after qualifying in the 10,000m (29:56.58) on Thursday.

True freshman Whittni Orton as well as Chase Horrocks qualified in the 1500m on Saturday after recording times of 4:21.68 and 4:00.24, respectively. Eyestone described Horrock’s race as “smart and tactical.”

“Whittni ran fearless in the faster of the two heats,” Eyestone said. “She was in ninth place but didn’t give up. She continued to fight, fight, fight all the way around.”

Prior to Saturday, 13 Cougars punched their tickets earlier in West Prelim competition or during the regular season.

On Friday, 10 Cougars qualified for nationals, including three men and one woman in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Daniel Carney finished in fifth (8:50.96), Jacob Heslington in eighth (8:52.09) and Mitchell Briggs in 11th (8:55.72). Kristi Rush-Briggs ran it in 10:18.39 and finished in ninth.

Korey Smith and Max Scheible punched their tickets in the 400m-hurdle as well. Smith recorded a 50.69 while Scheible clocked in a personal-best 50.77 seconds. Zachary Stetler qualified in the shot put with a throw of 18.20m/59-8.5 for 10th place. 

Shea Collinsworth advanced to nationals in the 800m with a 2:05.09. Andrea Stapleton finished fifth overall in the high jump after a jump of 1.79m/ 5-10.5.

Along with Young, Rory Linkletter moved on in the 10,000m on Thursday, posting a 29:51.63.

Jackson Walker automatically qualified for nationals in the decathlon after earning 7,483 points in BYU’s Last Chance Meet May 12-13.

The qualifying athletes will compete in Eugene, Oregon, beginning on Wednesday, June 7, through Saturday, June 10.

Links of Note:

• Day Two Recap
• Day One Recap
• BYU Track and Field Twitter account (@BYUTFXC)- follow for meet updates and additional information  

Overall Results:

PROVO, Utah – With a total of 46 qualifying athletes, BYU track and field heads to the 2017 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field West Preliminaries in Austin, Texas, this weekend.

“When you go into the preliminaries, it’s a celebration of those athletes who made it, but first and foremost, the goal is to advance to the national meet in Eugene, Oregon, by finishing in the top 12,” BYU head coach Ed Eyestone said. “The secondary goal is to improve on your position coming in and move up.”

The men’s team has a total of 31 entries in 16 events while the women will compete with 22 entries in 10 events. The women’s team is currently ranked No. 23 in the USTFCCA NCAA Division I rankings.

In order to move on to the 2017 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon, in two weeks, athletes will have to finish in the top 12 in their respective events at the West Preliminary. BYU currently has 13 athletes and a relay team ranked in the top 12 in the west going into the preliminary round.

Sophomore Brenna Porter (No. 9) will kick off the meet for BYU on Thursday in the first round of the 400m-hurdles. Chase Horrocks (No. 9) will then compete in the 1500m followed by Tatenda Tsumba (No. 10) in the 100m and Shea Collinsworth (No. 3) in the 800m. Quarterfinals for these events will be held on Friday and Saturday.

Clayton Young (No. 3) will also compete on Thursday in the 10,000m with teammates Rory Linkletter (No. 12) and Jonathan Harper (No. 15).

Eight Cougars will race in the 3000m steeplechase on Friday night. Five of the eight are ranked in the top 10, including Kristi Rush (No. 3), Erica Birk (No. 4) and Courtney Wayment (No. 6) on the women’s side with Clayson Shumway (No. 7) and Daniel Carney (No. 8) representing the men.

Other performances to watch out for on Friday are Andrea Stapleton (No. 10) in the high jump and Jameson Shirley (No. 15) in the pole vault. BYU’s 4x100m relay team (No. 12) will compete on Saturday.

“We’re not ruling anyone out and there is hope for everyone to, at the very least, improve on their ranking coming into this meet, and at the very best, finish top 12 and advance,” Eyestone said. “This meet is not so much about winning your event because it’s a preliminary heat. Really, you just want to finish in the top 12.”

The meet will begin Thursday, May 25, and run through Saturday, May 27, at Mike A. Myers Stadium on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin. To view a full schedule of the meet, click here. Click here for live streaming and here for live results. These links can also be found on the track and field schedule page. For a complete list of qualified athletes from BYU, click here.