@CanesTrack Ready for NCAA Championships

EUGENE, Ore. – Twelve student-athletes will represent the University of Miami track and field program at the 2016 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships.

The Hurricanes had women advance to the national meet in the 400m, 100m hurdles, 4x100m relay, 4x400m relay, pole vault, high jump and hammer throw. Miami had men qualify for the NCAA Championships in the shot put and triple jump. The 2016 NCAA Outdoor Championships will be held at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., from June 8-11.

For the second straight year, the NCAA Outdoor Championships schedule has been divided by gender. The men will compete on Wednesday, June 8, and Friday, June 10, while the women are in action on Thursday, June 9, and Saturday, June 11.

Miami will have two student-athletes competing on Wednesday, as senior Isaiah Simmons and junior Gian Piero Ragonesi are in the men’s shot put field. Simmons earned a spot in Eugene after a throw of 18.65m at the NCAA East Preliminary, while Ragonesi clinched his spot at the NCAA meet with a throw of 18.59m. Both are first-time qualifiers and they are set to compete at 9:30 p.m. ET on June 8.

June 9 will be the first day that the 14^th-ranked Hurricane women will be in action. Miami’s women will compete in six events on Thursday, beginning with senior Precious Ogunleye in the women’s hammer throw.

Ogunleye earned a spot at the NCAA Outdoor Championships after posting a season-best throw of 60.02m in the women’s hammer throw at the NCAA East Preliminary. She will compete in the same event at the NCAA Outdoor Championships at 5 p.m. ET.

Miami’s 4x100m relay is next in action, competing for a right to advance to the NCAA final at 7:32 p.m. ET. The Hurricanes’ 4x100m relay is ranked ninth in the NCAA and made history, as the quartet of Shakima Wimbley, Carolyn Brown, Aiyanna Stiverne and Ebony Morrison combined to win gold at the ACC Championships with a school-record time of 43.63 seconds.

ACC pole vault champion Alysha Newman’s school record mark of 4.60m from the Hurricane Alumni Invitational ranks third in the country. Newman is scheduled to compete in the women’s pole vault at the NCAA Outdoor Championships beginning at 8 p.m. ET.

Morrison made a big splash at the NCAA East Preliminary, shattering Miami’s school record in the women’s 100m hurdles. The junior posted a time of 12.76 seconds in the quarterfinals of the NCAA East Preliminary that ranks third in the NCAA. Morrison will compete in the semifinals of the women’s 100m hurdles at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, beginning at 8:32 p.m. ET.

Miami has two competitors in the women’s 400m semifinals, as juniors Wimbley and Stiverne are set to run at 9 p.m. ET. The 2016 ACC Women’s Track MVP, Wimbley advanced in the 400m with a time of 51.26 seconds that was the fastest at the NCAA East Preliminary. Her ACC gold medal-winning time of 50.90 seconds ranks third in the NCAA. Stiverne, who was a bronze medalist in the 400m at the ACC Championships, advanced in the 400m after running a time of 52.53 seconds in the quarterfinals of the NCAA East Preliminary.

The Hurricanes’ 4x400m relay will be the final competitors on Thursday, set to run at 10:48 p.m. ET for a chance to advance to Saturday’s final. Miami’s 4x400m relay earned a gold medal at the ACC Championships, as Destiny Washington, Stiverne, Brittny Ellis and Wimbley combined to set a meet record with a time of 3:30.61. At the NCAA East Preliminary, freshman Anna Runia ran the opening leg, while Stiverne, Ellis and Wimbley followed to clinch the Hurricanes’ spot at the national meet with a time of 3:33.80.

Senior John-Patrick Friday will be the lone Hurricane in action on Friday, June 10. A 2015 national qualifier, Friday returns to the national meet in the triple jump after posting a mark of 16.04m at the NCAA East Preliminary. He will compete for the Canes at 8:30 p.m. ET.

Fellow senior Dakota Dailey-Harris will kick off the Hurricane women in action on Saturday, June 11. Dailey-Harris’ school record of 1.85m in the women’s high jump is fifth in the country. The 2016 ACC indoor champion, Dailey-Harris will compete in the women’s high jump finals at 6 p.m. ET on June 11.

The Hurricanes could also have competitors in the 4x100m final at 6:32 p.m. ET, 100m hurdles final at 7:12 p.m. ET, 400m final at 7:32 p.m. ET and the 4x400m final at 8:51 p.m. ET on Saturday.

All four days of the 2016 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships will be broadcast live on the ESPN family of networks. Broadcast information is available below.

For all the latest information on the Miami Hurricanes, follow the official Twitter feed, @MiamiHurricanes, or “Like Us” on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/MiamiHurricanes. Follow @CanesTrack on Twitter for specific news on UM track and field and cross country. The program is also on Instagram.