UNI track and field: Darius King, Tom Yezek headed to 2022 NCAA Championships

Wednesday, June 8

Eugene, Oregon

8:40 p.m.

University of Northern Iowa

NCAA Championships - men's shot put (Darius King)

UNI track and field: Darius King, Tom Yezek headed to 2022 NCAA Championships

6/2/2022 11:41:00 AM | Track and Field

LIVE RESULTS Broadcast schedule Watch King (8:40 p.m. CT June 8) - ESPN3 Watch Yezek (7:35 p.m. CT June 10) - ESPN3 UNI notes June 8 start list June 10 start list

UNI track and field at NCAA Championships

Hayward Field | Eugene, Oregon
June 8-11, 2002
No. 5 Darius King | shot put - 8:40 p.m. CT June 8
No. 32 Tom Yezek | discus - 7:35 p.m. CT June 10

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa - UNI track and field will be sending its most competitors to the NCAA Championships since 2016.

Darius King will compete in shot put, and Tom Yezek will be throwing discus next week in Eugene, Oregon.

DARIUS KING

King holds the fifth best mark in the country in shot put with a throw of 20.33 meters (66 feet, 8.5 inches).

King holds UNI's indoor and outdoor school records in the shot put. He has broken his own record twice this year after setting the original mark in the 2021 outdoor season. He closed out the 2022 West Preliminary Rounds with the current record of 20.33 meters.

This will be his third outdoor appearance at the NCAA Championships. He is coming off a 10th-place finish at the 2022 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships in shot put.

He narrowly missed qualifying for the NCAA Championships in the discus. He finished 13th with a throw of 54.83 meters (179-10). His personal best in the event is 57.09 meters (187-4). King is a graduate student from Moline, Illinois.

King at NCAA competitions

2022 outdoor: Missouri Valley Conference champ (disc / shot), 7th in hammer
2022 indoor: 2nd team AA (10th place - 19.58 meters)
2021 outdoor: 1st team AA (7th place - 19.69 meters)
2021 indoor: 2nd team AA (12th place - 18.69 meters)
2020 outdoor: canceled
2020 indoor: qualified as No.14 seed when championships canceled
2019 outdoor: 23rd place
2019 indoor: did not qualify
2018 outdoor: 23rd at West Prelims
2018 indoor: did not qualify

TOM YEZEK

Yezek is No. 32 in the nation in dicus. His throw of 58.21 meters (191-0) is third on UNI's all-time list for best discus throws in program history.

This is his first appearance at the NCAA championships. He competed in the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds in 2022, 2021, 2018, 2017.

At the 2022 Missouri Valley Conference Championships, he was second in discus to teammate King. Yezek is a graduate student from Northwood, Iowa.

Yezek by year

2022 outdoor: MVC - 2nd discus / 3rd shot put
2021 outdoor: MVC champion in discus (55.76 meters) | 55.42 m at Prelims
2021 indoor: competed unattached
2020 indoor: MVC - 2nd shot put
2018 outdoor: competed in shot and disc at West Prelims
2018 indoor: competed in shot put at MVC Championships
2017 outdoor: competed in discus at West Prelims

UNI's top marks in discus
1. Brent Geringer: 199-6 (60.81m) in 1979
2. Jordan Williams: 193-5 (58.95m) in 2013
3. Tom Yezek: 191-0 (58.21m) in 2022
4. Isaac Holtz: 190-8 (58.12m) in 2017
5. Matt Haven: 187-10 (57.26m) in 1984
Matt Schiffer: 187-10 (57.26m) in 2014

UNI AT NCAAs RECENT HISTORY