Panther track & field gears up for NCAA West Prelims in California

Wednesday, May 24

Sacramento, Calif.

6 p.m. / 1 p.m. / 4:30 p.m.

University of Northern Iowa

NCAA West Preliminary Round

2023 MVC Outdoor Track & Field Championships | Redbird Track & Field Complex (Normal, Ill.)

Photo by: Illinois State Athletics

Panther track & field gears up for NCAA West Prelims in California

5/22/2023 10:00:00 AM | Track and Field

Meet Schedule Live Results Watch (Day One) [ESPN+]Watch (Day Two) [ESPN+]Watch (Day Three) [ESPN+]Watch (Day Four) [ESPN+]

UNI sends 12 to Sacramento in search of qualification for next month's NCAA Outdoor Championships in Texas.

UNI track and field at NCAA West Preliminary Round

May 24-27, 2023
Hornet Stadium (Sacramento, Calif.)
Schedule (See UNI specific schedule below)

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa — The road to the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships continues this week for 12 members of the UNI roster as the NCAA's West Preliminary Round commences this Wednesday at Hornet Stadium in Sacramento, California.

To qualify for this meet, athletes must have ranked within the top-48 in their respective region for individual events and the top-24 for relays. The top-12 place winners in each event will qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships to be held June 7-10 at Mike A. Myers Stadium in Austin, Texas. The heptathlon and decathlon are not contested at the regional competitions, as the nation's top-24 performers will automatically qualify.

Senior sprinter Isaiah Trousil, who enters this week looking to qualify for his first NCAA Championships in his final collegiate season, will run in three events, including the men's 100 and 200-meter dashes, as well as the 4x100-meter relay. The Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) champion in both the 100 and 200 meters, Trousil is tied for the fifth fastest time in the west region at 10.07 seconds, and is tied for 14th in the 200 meters at 20.52 seconds.

UNI's men's 4x100-meter relay, which includes Tinashe Chigudu, Luke Meyers, Trousil and Deonte Dean ranks 20th in the region. The Panthers set a new school-record time of 39.62 seconds in the finals of the MVC Championships two weeks ago in Normal, Illinois.

In the throwing circles, Makenna Wilson is set to compete in multiple throwing events in California, recording the eighth-best mark in the women's hammer throw in the west region at 66.69 meters. Having won the hammer at three meets this season, Shavers enters Thursday's competition ranked 11th in the region with a toss of 64.55 meters. Wilson will also compete in the women's shot put as the 24-seed, along with teammate Katie Fare, the 14-seed, who holds the second-longest throw in program history of 17.09 meters, after recording a second-place finish in the shot put at the MVC Outdoor Championship.

In the mid-distance races, both Drake Hanson and Chase Knoche qualified in the men's 800-meter run. Hanson, the MVC's indoor 800-meter champion this past February, qualifies with a season-best time of 1:49.19 as the 24-seed and UNI's third-fastest time ever, while Knoche comes in seeded 33rd with a time of 1:49.69.

MVC hurdle champion Jack Sumners will get the opportunity to compete for a trip to Austin as the 35-seed in the men's 110-meter hurdles. Sumners, who cracked UNI's top-five all-time performances in school history this year, enters with a time of 13.87 seconds.

The Panthers will have two male athletes competing in field events, including MVC pole vault champion Brendan Safley, who won the conference title with a 5.15-meter vault as the 40-seed. Carter Morton will make his NCAA West Region debut as he competes in the high jump as the 42-seed, after clearing 2.11 meters last month at the Drake Relays.

UNI's 2023 NCAA West Region Schedule (All times listed as Central Time)

Wednesday, May 24

8 p.m. - Jack Sumners (Men's 110m Hurdles-Prelims)

8:30 p.m. - Brendan Safley (Men's Pole Vault)

8:35 p.m. - Isaiah Trousil (Men's 100m-Prelims)

9:05 p.m. - Drake Hanson and Chase Knoche (Men's 800m-Prelims)

9:50 p.m. - Isaiah Trousil (Men's 200m-Prelims)

Thursday, May 25

1 p.m. - Makenna Wilson and Mari Shavers (Women's Hammer Throw)

8 p.m. - Katie Fare and Makenna Wilson (Women's Shot Put)

Friday, May 26

4:30 p.m. - Carter Morton (Men's High Jump)