Lions Set Sights On NCAA Division I East Region Prelims

Thursday, May 23

Jacksonville, Fla.

All Day

Columbia

NCAA East Prelims

Lions Set Sights On NCAA Division I East Region Prelims

5/21/2019 9:52:00 AM | Track and Field

Women's Participation List (PDF)Men's Participation List (PDF)Schedule Of Events (PDF)NCAA Official Release

16 Columbia student-athletes will make the trip to Jacksonville, to represent the Lions among the best in the region.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla.— 16 Columbia Track and Field athletes sit on the cusp of qualifying for the NCAA Division I Track and Field Championships, with only the NCAA Division I Track and Field Eastern Region Preliminaries being the final hurdle to reaching the championships, and that final hurdle begins in Jacksonville, Fla., at the University of North Florida on Thursday, May 23 and concludes on Saturday, May 25.

In order to qualify for the East Prelims, Columbia's student-athletes' had to have marks set within to top 48 of the Eastern region, in each respective event, and a total of 16 men and women set those marks to head into the weekend with a chance of reaching the NCAA Division I Championships. When breaking it down, the men will send nine student-athletes and the women will send seven.

LINKS TO FOLLOW THE ACTION:
Watch Live ($)
Live Results
Schedule of Events (PDF)

PATH TO AUSTIN, TEXAS: In order for any of Columbia's student-athletes to make it Austin, Texas for the NCAA Division I National Championships, the path is listed out simply enough. The prelims will have two rounds, a first and quarterfinal round. The goal is to finish in the top 24 (out of 48) in the first round, then be inside the top 12 in the quarterfinal round.

If a top 12 finish is recorded in the quarterfinal round, the next step is to join the other top 12 finishing times in each respective event from the western half of the prelims for the semifinal round to be held in Austin.

TOP NATIONAL MARKS BY LIONS: Among the 16 student-athletes who have qualified for the prelims, a handful have recorded top marks among the eastern region, which includes student-athletes competing for schools from the Ivy League, Atlantic Coast Conference, Southeastern Conference and BIG10. The top mark from the Lions is the lone top 10 mark among the eastern region's best and it belongs to Kali Hatcher, who set a mark of 13.41m in the triple jump at the Virginia Challenge on April 19.

Allie Hays holds the other top 15 finish for the Columbia women, having finished with a time of 16:06.00 in the 5,000-Meter Run at the Stanford Invitational on March 29. Leading the men is Brian Zabilski's 10th-best time of 13:53.51, set in the 5,000-Meter Run while competing at Stanford Invitational. Alek Sauer, who ran a 1:48.47 in the 800-Meter Run at the Florida Relays (March 28) and Daniel Igbokwe, who hit a mark of 15.88m in the triple jump at the Virginia Challenge, round out the men top marks, with Sauer's time sitting at 11th and Igbokwe's mark coming in at 15th.

COLUMBIA STUDENT-ATHLETES COMPETING

Women Competitors (By order of event)
1,500-Meter Run: Annie Fanta; Katie Wasserman
800-Meter Run: Sydney Groom
10,000-Meter Run: Abby McLaughlin
Triple Jump: Kali Hatcher
5,000-Meter Run: Erin Gregoire; Allie Hays

Men Competitors (By order of event)
Hammer Throw: Jack Pihlkar
1,500-Meter Run: Sam Ritz
800-Meter Run: Josiah Langstaff; Solomon Rice; Alek Sauer; Jackson Storey
Triple Jump: Daniel Igbokwe
5,000-Meter Run: Lucky Schreiner; Brian Zabilski

FOLLOWING THE LIONS: Stay up to date on all things Columbia Track and Field by following the Lions on Twitter (@ColumbiaXCTF), Instagram (@columbiaxctf) and on Facebook (@ColumbiaAthletics).