SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Stanford track and field teams begin competition at the three-day NCAA West Preliminary Round on Thursday at Sacramento State.
Of the 48 qualifiers in each individual event, the top 12 placers in each of the nation's two regionals -- the other is in Jacksonville, Florida -- advance to the NCAA Championships June 5-8 in Austin, Texas.
Stanford is sending 30 individuals – 17 women and 13 men -- plus one relay team. Harrison Williams already has qualified for NCAA's in the decathlon.
Meet Schedule:
Thursday: Field events, noon; Running events 4:30 p.m.
Friday: Field events, noon; Running events, 4:30 p.m.
Saturday: Field events, 2:45 p.m.; Running events, 6 p.m.
Full Schedule: Click here (PDF).
Heat Sheets: Click here (PDF).
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Stanford in USTFCCCA rankings:
Men: No. 11
Women: No. 24
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Stanford Notes:
With five runners, Stanford has a strong chance to qualify at least one runner for the NCAA 5,000 final for the 11th consecutive year. The Cardinal brings 2018 NCAA outdoor champ Grant Fisher, as well as Connor Lane, Alex Ostberg, Clayton Mendez, and Thomas Ratcliffe to Sacramento. That's the largest representation in any event for Stanford, including men and women.
Mackenzie Little, Jenna Gray, or Virginia Miller can extend a Stanford NCAA qualifying streak in the javelin to nine years, following Eda Karesin (2011), Brianna Bain (2012-14), Victoria Smith (2015), Little (2016, 2017, 2018), and Gray (2017, 2018). Little, the defending NCAA champion, recently captured her fourth Pac-12 championship. She is the No. 1 seed and is undefeated this season.
Stanford has four runners among the top 17 seeds in the women's 1,500. If No. 10 Jessica Lawson, No 11 Julia Heymach, No. 14 Ella Donaghu, or No. 17 Jordan Oakes advance it would be their first NCAA appearance.
Abbie McNulty, Aria Small, and Oakes are the only Stanford athletes scheduled to compete in two events. McNulty is entered in the 5,000 and 10,000, Small in the long and triple jumps, and Oakes in the 1,500 and 5,000. None of the three have qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships before. This is the final opportunity for McNulty, a fifth-year senior.
Stanford has a seven-year NCAA qualifying streak in the women's 800 – a streak that includes nine NCAA finals appearances. Carolyn Wilson carries the torch for the Cardinal that event.
Two-time Pac-12 men's steeplechase champion Steven Fahy seeks a second consecutive NCAA berth. Fahy placed third at nationals last year and is regarded as a contender once again.
Stanford redshirt freshman Liam Christensen returns to the Sacramento State site where he won the U.S. junior national title in the men's javelin, in 2017. Christensen, who already holds the Stanford record, is seeded second.
Stanford already has one NCAA qualifier: decathlete Harrison Williams, who is ranked No. 2 among collegians with his school-record 8,112 points scored at the Bryan Clay Invitational last month. Multi-events athletes advance directly to NCAA's, and do not compete at the Prelims.
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Stanford schedule:
(Quarterfinal or Semifinal = final round)
Thursday
Noon: Women's javelin final (Jenna Gray, Mackenzie Little, Virginia Miller).
3 p.m.: Women's high jump final (Rachel Reichenbach).
4 p.m.: Women's hammer final (Jordan Fong).
5:30 p.m.: Women's 1,500 first round (Ella Donaghu, Julia Heymach, Jessica Lawson, Jordan Oakes).
6:45 p.m.: Women's long jump final (Aria Small).
6:55 p.m.: Men's 100 first round (Gabriel Navarro).
7:20 p.m.: Women's 400 first round (Ashlan Best).
7:45 p.m.: Women's 400 first round (Louis Stenmark).
8:10 p.m.: Women's 800 first round (Carolyn Wilson).
8:35 p.m.: Men's 800 first round (Hari Sathyamurthy).
9 p.m.: Women's 10,000 semifinal (Abbie McNulty).
9:40 p.m.: Women's 10,000 semifinal (Alek Parsons, Michael Vernau).
Friday
Noon: Women's discus (Jaimi Salone).
Noon: Men's javelin (Liam Christensen, Will Kingsfield).
5 p.m.: Women's pole vault (Erika Malaspina, Kaitlyn Merritt).
5:30 p.m.: Women's 400 quarterfinal.
5:45 p.m.: Men's 400 quarterfinal.
6:15 p.m.: Men's 100 quarterfinal.
6:30 p.m.: Women's 800 quarterfinal.
6:45 p.m.: Men's 800 quarterfinal.
7:30 p.m.: Women's 200 first round (Ashlan Best).
9 p.m.: Men's steeplechase quarterfinal (Steven Fahy).
Saturday
3 p.m.: Women's triple jump final (Aria Small).
6:30 p.m.: Women's 1,500 quarterfinal.
7:35 p.m.: Women's 200 quarterfinal.
8:05 p.m.: Women's 5,000 quarterfinal (Abbie McNulty, Jordan Oakes, Fiona O'Keeffe).
8:45 p.m.: Men's 5,000 quarterfinal (Grant Fisher, Connor Lane, Alex Ostberg, Clayton Mendez, and Thomas Ratcliffe).
9:25 p.m.: Women's 4x400 relay quarterfinal.
