RCW: Sport Spotlight 4.34 (Track & Field)
#KUtrack earned a total of 16 entries to the NCAA Championships this weekend. Take a look at who will be making the trip to Eugene ??https://t.co/73Nop4LKCG
— Kansas Track & Field (@KUTrack) May 27, 2018
7?? #ncaaTF qualifiers and a school record. Friday was ??. #KUtrack #ncaaTFwest
A post shared by Kansas Track & Field (@kutrack) on May 26, 2018 at 10:48am PDT
Kansas track & field qualified 16 entries for the 2018 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships over the weekend at the NCAA West Preliminary Round in Sacramento, California. Take a look at who will be competing for the Crimson and Blue at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, June 6-9, and catch up on everything you need to know about the Jayhawk student-athletes who qualified for the national meet, including which events they will be competing in, season-bests, and significant milestones.
Barden Adams // Senior // West Orange, N.J.
EVENT: Triple Jump
SEASON BEST: 16.59 meters (54-5.25 ft.)
CAREER BEST: 16.59 meters (54-5.25 ft.)
SCHOOL RANK: Second
NATIONAL RANK: Third
Adams qualified for his second NCAA Outdoor Championships, having also earned a trip to the national meet last season, where he finished fifth to land him First Team All-America honors. Adams also competed at the NCAA Indoor Championships in the event in 2017 and 2018, earning First Team All-America honors at both meets.
At the National Relay Championships in Fayetteville, Arkansas this season, Adams recorded a career-best mark to move into second on the Kansas all-time performers list.
Hussain Al Hizam // Junior // Jubail, Saudi Arabia
EVENT: Pole Vault
SEASON BEST: 5.63 meters (18-5.5 ft.)
CAREER BEST: 5.63 meters (18-5.5 ft.)
SCHOOL RANK: Sixth
NATIONAL RANK: Sixth
Al Hizam finished third and earned First Team All-America honors at the 2017 Outdoor Track & Field Championships and won the 2018 NCAA Indoor National Title with a clearance of 5.70 meters (18-8.25 ft.) to break the indoor school record, his own Saudi Arabian national record and Texas A&M’s Gilliam Indoor Stadium facility record.
The junior’s season-best clearance came at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship, where he won his second Big 12 Outdoor crown and broke the Big 12 Championship record with his vault of 5.63 meters (18-5.5 ft.).
Nicolai Ceban // Senior // Camenca, Moldova
EVENT: Discus
SEASON BEST: 57.63 meters (189-1 ft.)
CAREER BEST: 60.01 meters (196-10 ft.)
SCHOOL RANK: Sixth
NATIONAL RANK: 28th
Ceban qualified for his fourth NCAA Outdoor Championships in the discus, finishing eighth at the NCAA West Prelim. The senior finished third this year at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship in the event, and has earned two Second Team and one honorable mention All-America honors in the discus in his career, finishing 13th in both 2016 and 2017.
Courtney Coppinger // Redshirt Senior // Leawood, Kan.
EVENT: 3,000-Meter Steeplechase
SEASON BEST: 9:51.28
CAREER BEST: 9:51.28
SCHOOL RANK: First
NATIONAL RANK: Eighth
Coppinger shaved an incredible 16 seconds off her personal best in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the West Prelim to break the Kansas school record and earn an auto-qualifier to the NCAA Championships. This will be the first time the redshirt senior will appear at the Outdoor Championships, but Coppinger was a member of the KU women’s indoor distance medley relay team at the 2018 NCAA Indoor Championships that placed ninth to earn Second Team All-America honors.
Gleb Dudarev // Sophomore // Vitebsk, Belarus
EVENT: Hammer Throw
SEASON BEST: 78.04 meters (256-0 ft.)
CAREER BEST: 78.04 meters (256-0 ft.)
SCHOOL RANK: First
NATIONAL RANK: First
Dudarev’s season best came at the Kansas Relays on April 20, where he won the event and broke his own school record, the Kansas Relays meet record (which stood for 35 years) and the Rock Chalk Park facility record. His throw also ranked No. 5 in the world at the time (currently No. 13), and made him the No. 5 all-time collegiate performer, notching the best in-season mark by a collegiate athlete since 2002.
Along with his Kansas Relays title, Dudarev won the hammer throw at the Sun Angel Classic in Tempe, Arizona; his second Big 12 Championship title, breaking Baylor’s Clyde Hart Track & Field Stadium facility record with a throw of 72.37 meters (237-5 ft.) and was the top finisher in the NCAA West Preliminary Round last weekend with a mark of 73.09 meters (239-9 ft.), which ranks him as the No. 3 performer in the event in meet history.
Dudarev will return to the NCAA Championships after placing third at the national meet last year, earning First Team All-America honors.
Alexandra Emilianov // Freshman // Chisinau, Moldova
EVENT: Discus
SEASON BEST: 60.24 meters (54-7.25 ft.)
CAREER BEST: 60.24 meters (54-7.25 ft.)
SCHOOL RANK: First
NATIONAL RANK: Sixth
Emilianov has had an impressive rookie season for Kansas. The freshman not only qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the discus, but she also won the Big 12 crown in the event, breaking the Kansas school record along the way. Emilianov also broke the school record in the shot put this season.
George Evans // Freshman // Inverness, Scotland
EVENT: Discus
SEASON BEST: 58.67 meters (192-6 ft.)
CAREER BEST: 58.67 meters (192-6 ft.)
SCHOOL RANK: Eighth
NATIONAL RANK: 17th
Evans qualified for the NCAA Championships as a freshman, adding to an already successful rookie campaign. The Inverness, Scotland native finished fifth overall at the West Prelim and posted a second-place finish in the discus at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship, where he posted his season-best mark to become the No. 8 performer in Kansas school history.
Dylan Hodgson // Junior // Washington, Kan.
EVENT: 3,000-Meter Steeplechase
SEASON BEST: 8:43.14
CAREER BEST: 8:43.14
SCHOOL RANK: Sixth
NATIONAL RANK: 13th
Hodgson earned a time qualifier to the NCAA Championships with a career-best performance in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the NCAA West Preliminary Round. The Washington, Kansas product became the No. 6 performer in school history with his time of 8:43.14.
Hodgson finished second in the steeplechase at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship this season. This will be his first appearance at the NCAA Championships, having missed the cut for the national meet at the West Prelim in 2016.
Bryce Hoppel // Sophomore // Midland, Texas
EVENT: 800 Meters
SEASON BEST: 1:47.93
CAREER BEST: 1:47.93
SCHOOL RANK: Eighth
NATIONAL RANK: 27th
Hoppel ran a career-best time at the NCAA West Preliminary Round to qualify for his first trip to the NCAA Outdoor Championships. He finished fifth overall at the meet in the 800 meters and became the No. 8 performer in school history with his time.
The Midland, Texas native finished fourth at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship in the 800 meters, but won the Big 12 Indoor Championship earlier this season and qualified for the NCAA Indoor Championships, where he earned First Team All-America honors with an eighth-place finish.
Hoppel also qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships as a member of the 4×400-meter relay team.
LaTyria Jefferson // Junior // DeSoto, Texas
EVENT: High Jump
SEASON BEST: 1.83 meters (6-0 ft.)
CAREER BEST: 1.83 meters (6-0 ft.)
SCHOOL RANK: Third
NATIONAL RANK: 14th
EVENT: Long Jump
SEASON BEST: 6.23 meters (20-5.25 ft.)
CAREER BEST: 6.23 meters (20-5.25 ft.)
SCHOOL RANK: Ninth
NATIONAL RANK: 45th
Jefferson qualified for the national meet in both the long jump and high jump. This will be Jefferson’s second appearance at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, having qualified in the high jump last season, where she placed 18th to earn All-America Honorable Mention status.
In the high jump, Jefferson posted a career-best at the Big 12 Championship, where she finished second and became the third-ranked performer in school history.
Jefferson notched a career best in the long jump in her season opener at the Arkansas Spring Invitational in Fayetteville, Arkansas, to become the No. 9 performer on KU’s all-time list.
Sharon Lokedi // Redshirt Senior // Eldoret, Kenya
EVENT: 5,000 Meters
SEASON BEST: 15:27.09
CAREER BEST: 15:27.09
SCHOOL RANK: First
NATIONAL RANK: Sixth
EVENT: 10,000 Meters
SEASON BEST: 32:21.19
CAREER BEST: 32:21.19
SCHOOL RANK: First
NATIONAL RANK: Fourth
Lokedi qualified for her third NCAA Outdoor Championships, but this will mark the first time the fifth-year senior will compete in two events. Lokedi qualified in the 10,000 meters in 2016 and 2017, but will compete in both the 5,000 and 10,000 this year.
The Eldoret, Kenya native’s final outdoor season has been nothing short of spectacular, breaking school records in both the 5,000 and 10,000-meter races.
Lokedi broke her own 10,000-meter school record to open her outdoor season at the Stanford Invitational with a time of 32:31.19. She then broke her own school record and the Rock Chalk Park facility record in the 5,000 meters at the Kansas Relays with a time of 15:42.76. Lokedi went on to break her own school record in the 5,000 again at the West Prelims, shaving 15 seconds off her previous time to clock in at 15:27.09.
The senior won Big 12 titles in both the 5,000 and 10,000 meters, becoming just the second athlete in conference history to win titles in both events in back-to-back years.
All of the accomplishments pair nicely with Lokedi’s 2018 cross country and indoor seasons, where she earned three Big 12 titles (XC, 3,000m, 5,000m), two First Team All-America honors (3,000m, 5,000m) and was a part of three school records (3,000m, 5,000m, distance medley relay). Although this is Lokedi’s final outdoor season, she still has one year of eligibility remaining in both cross country and indoor track.
Nick Meyer // Redshirt Senior // Kingman, Kan.
EVENT: Pole Vault
SEASON BEST: 5.35 meters (17-6.5 ft.)
CAREER BEST: 5.50 meters (18-0.5 ft.)
SCHOOL RANK: T-10th
NATIONAL RANK: 29th
Meyer qualified for the NCAA Championships for the first time in three years, having earned a trip to the national meet in 2015, where he vaulted to Second Team All-America honors with a 13th-place finish.
This season, Meyer posted his season best at the National Relay Championships in Fayetteville, Arkansas, where he cleared 5.35 meters (17-6.5 ft.) to place seventh. The fifth-year senior’s career best came in 2016 at the Ward Haylett Invitational in Manhattan, Kansas, clearing 5.50 meters (18-0.5 ft.).
Andrea Willis // Sophomore // Colorado Springs, Colo.
EVENT: Pole Vault
SEASON BEST: 4.34 meters (14-2.75 ft.)
CAREER BEST: 4.34 meters (14-2.75 ft.)
SCHOOL RANK: Third
NATIONAL RANK: 13th
Willis qualified for her first NCAA Championships to add to her successful sophomore season. Willis posted a career-best clearance of 4.34 meters (14-2.75 ft.) at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship to earn a second-place finish in the event. At the West Preliminary, Willis only needed to clear 4.18 meters (13-8.5 ft.) to qualify for the NCAA Championships. At the 2018 Big 12 Indoor Championship, Willis posted a fourth-place finish.
Men’s 4×400-Meter Relay Team // Ivan Henry, Isaiah Cole, Bryce Hoppel, Tre Daniels
SEASON BEST: 3:05.65
SCHOOL RANK: N/A
NATIONAL RANK: 23rd
The Kansas men’s 4×400-meter relay team qualified for the NCAA Championships as the final time qualifier at the NCAA West Preliminary Round. Comprised of junior Ivan Henry, sophomores Isaiah Cole and Bryce Hoppel, and senior Tre Daniels, the quartet posted a combined time of 3:06.12 to earn the 12th qualifying spot.
The relay team’s season-best time came at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship, where they finished fourth. Their time of 3:05.65 was just shy of making it on Kansas’ all-time top-10 list. The team will need to finish with a time of 3:05.14 or better at the NCAA Championships to make it into the KU record books.
