AUSTIN, Texas — Danielle Domenichelli and Kayla Smith qualified for the final round of the NCAA Championships with their performances at the NCAA West Preliminary Round, being held Thursday-Saturday in Austin, Texas.
Domenichelli qualified comfortably for the 10,000m finals by running 34:26.11. She took third overall and will advance to the final round of the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore.
Smith threw 51’4.50″ (15.66m) in the shot put to place 11th, securing her ticket to Eugene by about six inches. Her mark is also a five-inch personal best.
Ryan Martin advanced to the quarterfinals of the 800m run by placing second in his heat and 10th overall in the preliminary round. He ran 1:49.51 and will compete with 24 other runners for the 12 qualifying spots, which will be awarded after another round to be contested on Friday.
Scott Smith had a tough go at the 10,000m run. He finished 24th with a time of 30:31.90, with it taking a time of 29:47.54 to finish 12th and qualify for Eugene. He is still eligible to compete in the 5000m run, which will be held on Saturday.
Justine Diaz narrowly missed qualifying for the women’s 800m quarterfinals. She was the fastest competitor to miss out, as she ran 2:08.75 to place 25th overall. The top 24 runners advanced to the quarterfinals.
Michael Guerra threw 193-11 (59.10m) in the javelin, placing 31st. It took a throw of 214-11 to reach the top twelve.
The Gauchos had two participants in the 400m hurdles preliminary. Drew Johnston ran 52.90 to place 35th overall, and James Martin ran 54.90 to place 46th overall.
The NCAA West Preliminary Round will resume tomorrow and conclude on Saturday.
