Five Canes Advance on the Track at the NCAA East Preliminary
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Survive and advance.
That is the mantra for every student-athlete competing at the NCAA East Preliminary. Battling wet, chilly and windy conditions, five members of the University of Miami track and field program did exactly that on Thursday.
“I told them last night, ‘Saturday night at 10 o’clock, there is one thing guaranteed and that’s that 12 people in each event are going to Oregon for the NCAA finals,’” Miami director of track and field/cross country Amy Deem said. “’Rain, sleet, snow or whatever, there will be 12 people going. Are you going to be one of those 12 people?’ I think they responded well to that challenge up to this point. I think we handled ourselves better than we have in previous situations where it wasn’t the greatest conditions. We’re an outdoor sport. This weather could be worse in Oregon. You’ve got to go out there and compete and beat people.”
The Hurricanes had three women in the women’s 400m and all three earned spots in the quarterfinals after impressive runs. Shakima Wimbley won Heat 1 of the women’s 400m first round with a time of 51.81. One heat later, Aiyanna Stiverne joined Wimbley in the quarterfinals with a Heat 2 victory with a time of 53.12 seconds. Brittny Ellis won Heat 5 with a time of 52.76 seconds to make sure the Canes went three-for-three in advancing to the quarterfinals. Wimbley (1st), Ellis (4th) and Stiverne (6th) gave the Canes three of the best times in the field of 48 on Thursday night.
Henri Delauze also moved one to the 400m quarterfinals on the men’s side. The junior finished fourth in Heat 4 with a time of 47.29 seconds, but advanced with one of the six fastest non-automatic qualifying times.
Anna Runia advanced to the quarterfinals in the women’s 400m hurdles. The sophomore earned one of three automatic qualifying spots in Heat 5, finishing third with a time of 59.60 seconds to advance beyond the first round. Samantha Gonzalez finished sixth in Heat 6 of the women’s 400m hurdles with a time of 1:01.56, but did not advance.
“I was a little worried on the women’s side, because I felt like after all the emotion and heart that they put into ACCs they had been a little flat in practice. It was really good to see them come out here focused and regrouped and ready to advance to NCAAs. I was really pleased with how the three women and Henri ran in the quarter mile. Anna Had to fight through a tough one in the 400 hurdles, but I think she will be ready to go tomorrow. Overall, it was a good day.”
Amy Taintor posted a personal-best mark of 6.20m in the women’s long jump, but the junior missed advancing by three spots, finishing 15th overall. Stefani Kerrison posted a mark of 5.92m, but did not advance, placing 34th in the long jump.
“That was a huge PR for Amy,” Deem said. “I was disappointed that she didn’t sneak in there, but overall it was a good day. We advanced what we needed to advance and we’ve got to get up tomorrow and do it again.”
Kristina Knott finished fifth in Heat 1 of the women’s 100m first round with a time of 11.72 seconds, but did not advance to the quarterfinals. Isaiah Taylor finished eighth in Heat 2 of the men’s 100m first round with a time of 10.55 seconds and also did not advance to the quarterfinals.
Carlos Mangum posted a mark of 64.70m in the men’s hammer throw, finishing 18th overall. The senior wraps his career with the UM record in the men’s hammer throw at 66.87m.
Friday’s competition will feature Zakiya Rashid kicking off the action in the women’s discus at 2 p.m., with Erika Voyzey competing in the women’s high jump at 4:30 p.m.
On the track, Miami has Ebony Morrison and Kerrison opening up in the women’s 100m hurdles first round at 4:30 p.m., and Knott and Carolyn Brown racing in the women’s 200m first round at 7:30 p.m.
On Saturday, Miami is set to have Darlene Charles and Niara Hill compete in the women’s triple jump at 6 p.m., as well as the women’s 4x100m relay, women’s 4x400m relay and men’s 4x400m relay.
The 2017 NCAA East Preliminary will be broadcast on SEC Network+ beginning Friday at 5:30 p.m., and Saturday at 6 p.m.
The qualifiers out of the East and West Preliminaries will compete in the NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Championships held June 7-10 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.
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.
