JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- For the fourth year in a row, WKU Track and Field has qualified at least eight athletes for the NCAA Championships as a total of eight Hilltoppers advanced to compete against the nation's best in Eugene, Oregon, due to superb efforts at the NCAA East Preliminaries.
Vincent Wyatt and Keenon Laine headlined WKU's final day in Jacksonville Saturday as Wyatt punched his ticket to Eugene in the 110 meter hurdles after finishing ninth overall with a school-record time of 13.60 seconds. Laine followed that by qualifying for nationals in the high jump as he turned in a meet-high effort of 2.17 meters.
The dynamic duo of Kyree King and Julius Morris advanced the NCAA Championships in the 200 meter dash as King finished in sixth place with a time of 20.37 seconds and Morris placed ninth after clocking a time of 20.44. King is also set to represent the Hilltoppers in 100 meter dash in Eugene after qualifying for the event Friday.
For the third consecutive season a Hilltopper 4x100 relay team has qualified for the National Championships as the team of Jakaryus Redwine, Ventavius Sears, Kyree King and Julius Morris advanced to Eugene Saturday after capturing their heat and finishing fourth overall with a time of 39.27 seconds. The time is WKU's fastest of the year and second-best in school history.
The 4x400 relay team ended the NCAA East Preliminaries for WKU on a high note as the group of Redwine, Sears, Maor Seged and King qualified for the NCAA Championships after placing 9th with a season-best time of 3:06.05.
Several other Hilltoppers turned in strong efforts for WKU in the East Preliminaries Saturday but failed to advance to the NCAA Championships.
In the field, Ventavius Sears finished 35th in the triple jump event after an effort of 15.10 meters and sophomore Nick Demaline just missed advancing in the shot put after placing 13th with a throw of 18.36 meters as the top 12 athletes advanced to Eugene.
The Lady Topper outdoor season ended after the 4x100 relay team of Peli Alzola, Khadijah Valentine, Jadzia Beasley and Sandra Akachukwu concluded its season with a 16th place finish in the event with a time of 44.98 seconds.
Saturday's qualifiers will join WKU's Tomas Guerra (javelin) in Eugene as a total of eight Hilltoppers qualified for the 2016 NCAA Championships which are set to run from Wednesday, June 8, through Saturday, June 11, at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. WKU 2016 NCAA Championships Qualifiers
