Track and Field Set for NCAA East Preliminary
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Eighteen members of the University of Miami track and field program will begin their quest for a spot at the NCAA Outdoor Championships on Thursday.
The Hurricanes will be in action at the 2018 NCAA East Preliminary, scheduled for May 24-26 at the University of South Florida in Tampa, Fla. Six men and 12 women will represent the Canes in the annual forerunner to the national championship meet.
The preliminary competitions are scheduled for May 24-26. The University of South Florida in Tampa, Fla., will host the East Preliminary and California State University, Sacramento in Sacramento, Calif., will host the West Preliminary. The qualifiers out of these two regions will compete in the NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Championships held June 6-9 in Eugene, Oregon.
NCAA track and field fans can watch a live stream of the NCAA Division I East and/or West Preliminary Championships as FloTrack Pro subscribers. The subscription will include access to all FloTrack live broadcasts, video on-demand from all events, documentaries, technique videos and more. Coverage of the preliminary competitions will be available May 24-26 at www.FloTrack.com.
Fans can also follow all the action at the NCAA East Preliminary via live results by clicking HERE.
UPDATE: Due to weather, a revised meet schedule was released. The times below reflect the updated schedule.
THURSDAY – MAY 24
Miami has a trio of ACC champions headlining the group in action on Thursday, as ACC Track MVP Symone Mason will run in the women’s 400m and 2018 ACC gold medalist Samantha Gonzalez will be joined by 2017 ACC champ Anna Runia in the first round of the women’s 400m hurdles.
ACC silver medalist Kevin Arreaga will kick off the Canes competing Thursday. The freshman, who is 11thin the men’s hammer throw with a mark of 70.64m, is set to throw at 8:45 a.m.
McKinly Brown enters the men’s 400m hurdles ranked sixth with a time of 50.78 seconds. The sophomore will race at 12:30 p.m. in the first round of the men’s 400m hurdles, followed by Gonzalez and Runia in the women’s 400m hurdles first round at 1 p.m. Gonzalez enters the NCAA East Preliminary ranked fifth with a time of 56.77 seconds, while fellow junior Anna Runia is 10thin the 400m hurdles with a time of 57.64 seconds.
Miami’s men have two entries in the 100m, scheduled for 2:30 p.m., with Myles Valentine entering the NCAA East Preliminary ranked 42ndwith a time of 10.34 seconds and Isaiah Taylor’s time of 10.37 seconds is ranked 48th.
Alfreda Steele is one of two Hurricanes in the women’s 100m, scheduled for 2:55 p.m., ranked 23rdwith a time of 11.31 seconds, while Kristina Knott is 42ndin the 100m (11.51).
Mason, who is ranked fifth in the East Region in the 400m with a time of 51.53 seconds, will run in the first round of the event at 3:45 p.m.
Debbie Ajagbe will compete at in the women’s shot put at 5:30 p.m., her first of three opportunities to throw at the NCAA East Preliminary. The freshman enters the event ranked 13thin the East Region in the shot put with a mark of 16.22m.
Sean Grossman will represent Miami in the men’s 10,000m at 9 p.m. The senior, who is ranked 26thin the East region with a time of 29:38.64, is the first Hurricane distance runner to qualify for an NCAA East Preliminary and was the first Cane to score in a distance event at the ACC Championships.
FRIDAY – MAY 25 – UPDATE: Due to weather, a revised meet schedule was released for Friday. The times below reflect the updated schedule.
Friday’s competition begins at 8:45 a.m., as Gian Piero Ragonesi will open the day in the men’s discus. The senior is ranked eighth in the discus with a throw of 58.33m.
Miami will have two competitors in the women’s discus at 1:15 p.m. Zakiya Rashid enters the meet ranked seventh with a mark of 55.68m, while Ajagbe is eighth with a throw of 55.07m.
Tiara McMinn is ranked 14thin the 100m hurdles in the East Region with a time of 13.10 seconds. The freshman will run in the first round of the event at 12:30 p.m.
Miami could have competitors in the quarterfinals of the women’s 400m, men’s and women’s 100m, and men’s and women’s 400m hurdles between 1:45 p.m. and 2:45 p.m.
Knott, who is 39thin the 200m with a time of 23.52 seconds, will be the final Cane in action on Friday. The senior is set to run in the women’s 200m first round at 3:25 p.m.
SATURDAY – MAY 26
Saturday’s action opens with Ajagbe at 8:45 a.m. in the women’s hammer throw. The freshman is ranked 26thin the East Region in the hammer with a throw of 60.98m.
The Canes will have two competitors in the women’s triple jump at 12:30 p.m., as Niara Hill is ranked 31stwith a mark of 12.81m and Peyton Russell is 47thwith a mark of 12.56m.
Miami’s women’s 4x100m relay team enters the meet ranked sixth in the East Region and will run at 12:45 p.m.Knott, Steele, Mason and McMinn combined to win gold at the ACC Championships in the women’s 4x100m relay with a season-best time of 43.48 seconds that is second in UM history.
The Canes may have quarterfinalists in the women’s 100m hurdles (1:50 p.m.) and women’s 200m (2:20 p.m.), while Ragonesi returns to action in the men’s shot put at 5:30 p.m. The senior enters the competition ranks 20thin the East Region with a mark of 18.67m.
Miami’s women’s 4x400m relay will close out the action on the track at 4:15 p.m. Mason, Runia, Michelle Atherley and Gonzalez earned an ACC title in the women’s 4x400m, posting a season-best time of 3:32.40 that is eighth in the East region.
Atherley already punched her ticket to the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the women’s heptathlon, earning one of the top 24 scores in the country. The junior’s school record heptathlon score of 5,816 points is ranked 11thin the NCAA this season.
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.
