Track & Field Leaves East Regionals With Five Qualifiers

Saturday, May 28

Jacksonville, Fla.

TBA

Indiana University

NCAA East Regional

Track & Field Leaves East Regionals With Five Qualifiers

5/29/2016 1:39:00 AM | Track and Field

Three Indiana throwers head to Eugene with Morrison’s Saturday qualification

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Indiana track & field team will send a quintet of qualifiers to the NCAA Championships following the conclusion of the East Regional preliminaries. True freshman Willie Morrison joins the caravan with his best shot put distance of his career, becoming the first Indiana freshman to qualify for the outdoor championships since Derek Drouin (2009). Furthermore, Morrison is the first freshman thrower to reach the NCAA's championship weekend since 1991.

Morrison became the Hoosiers' fifth NCAA Outdoor qualifier after a record-setting session in the men's shot put. The freshman set a new personal record of 19.27m, the fourth-furthest distance in the regional field, on his second attempt. In the third flight, fellow freshman David Schall took 32^nd with a distance of 17.21m on his first throw.

Brenna Calder entered the first heat of the women's 1500m quarterfinals on Saturday, two days after achieving a new career best of 4:19.12 in the first round. The sophomore earned a seventh-place finish in her heat with a time of 4:22.91, the 14^th-fastest time in the quarterfinal round.

Indiana's final foursome of distance runners took the track for the men's 5000m semifinals under the lights at Hodges Stadium. Mark Chandler led Indiana's contingency with the 19^th-fastest time at 14:22.44, taking an 11^th-place finish in his heat. Jeremy Coughler, the lone Hoosier in the second heat, soared from 16^th-place to 10^th-place in the final three laps of his race, taking a 10^th-place finish with the field's 20^th-fastest time at 14:23.18. Jason Crist finished 15^th in his heat at 14:27.52, followed immediately by Matt Schwartzer at 14:33.35.

The Hoosier relay team of Zach Reitzug, Diquis Manley, Daniel Kuhn, and Markevious Roach closed the lid on the weekend in the third heat of the final event, the men's 4x400 relay.

Paul Galas finished two positions above his seed, in 32^nd place, by clearing the 2.03m increment on his first attempt in the first round of the men's high jump.

Up Next: NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships
Wednesday, June 8 – Saturday, June 11, 2016
Hayward Field • Eugene, Ore.

In two weeks, the Hoosiers will send five athletes to TrackTown USA for the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. The group headed to Eugene incudes one returning contender and four first-time qualifiers.

The Hoosiers' dynamic hammer throw duo of Laura Schroeder and Nakel McClinton were first to punch their NCAA tickets in Thursday's opening round. Schroeder earned a second-place finish in the region with a best distance of 62.58m, while McClinton took the 12^th and final qualifying spot with her 58.88m throw. Both throwers are making their debut at the Division-I Outdoor Championships.

Daniel Kuhn clinched his first NCAA Outdoor bid after a pair of inspiring performances in his 800m heats. After pulling ahead in the final strides to win his opening-round heat, Kuhn came back with a dramatic win in the final quarterfinal heat, posting the 12^th-fastest time at 1:48.41.

Making a second-consecutive trip to the NCAA Outdoor Championships is Sydney Clute, who cruised through the women's pole vault competition on Friday evening. Clute cleared all four increments on her first attempt, qualifying with her clearance of 4.25m. She was one of two entrants to qualify without missing an attempt alongside Michigan State's Lauren Chorny.

Morrison joined the fold on Saturday afternoon with the fourth-furthest distance in the men's shot put, a career best of 19.27m. With the conclusion of the NCAA West Regionals in Lawrence, Kansas, Morrison enters the final weekend having thrown the seventh-furthest mark in regional competition.