K-State to Send 25 Athletes to NCAA West Preliminary

17 Wildcats will compete in field events, eight on the track, including the men’s 4×400 relay

MANHATTAN, Kan. (K-State Athletics) – The K-State track and field teams will be represented by 25 athletes at the NCAA West Preliminary in Fayetteville, Ark., from Wednesday May 22 through Sunday May 25 at John McDonnell Field.

The NCAA Division I Track and Field Committee selects 48 individuals in each event and 24 relay teams to compete in the first round of the Outdoor Championships, which are divided into two preliminaries – the East and West.

In addition to the 25 selections, senior Urte Bacianskaite was announced as a qualifier for the women’s heptathlon in the NCAA Championships, which are set for June 5-8 in Eugene, Oregon.

At the West Preliminary, 17 men and women will compete in field events with eight on the track, including the men’s 4×400 relay team.

K-State’s Big 12 hammer throw champions, senior Kade McCall and junior Monique Hardy, hold the highest rankings heading into NCAA competition at No. 8 and No. 12. McCall threw his personal best of 71.87m/235-9 during the Jim Click Shootout on April 5-6. During that same meet, Hardy threw her season best distance of 64.65m/212-1.

Other throwers in women’s events include senior Charlotte Cattermole-Williams in the hammer, sophomore Tamaiah Koonce in the discus throw for her second consecutive year and junior Daisy Monie in the discus and shot put, along with three more women, junior Grace Thompson and seniors Jasmine Greer and Jaycee Schroeder.

Men’s throwers include senior Andrew White and sophomore Nate Collier in the discus and freshman Riley Marx and senior Joe Placek in the javelin throw. Marx will be the youngest athlete for K-State, he recorded his personal best throw of 68.04m/223-3 in 3^rd place at the Big 12 Championship.

Five Wildcats will compete in the high jump, sophomore Aaron Antoine, junior Marcus Gelpi and senior DevonRichardson in the men’s event and sophomore Sharie Enoe and junior Vanessa Mercera in the women’s. Antoine and Gelpi both enter competition tied with a best height of the season at 2.15m/7-0.50 from the Ward Haylett Invitational on April 26. Richardson is also set to compete in the men’s triple jump.

On the track, K-State will have three runners in the 3,000 meter steeplechase, junior Tommy Hazen, sophomore Cecilia Fisher and senior Hannah Stewart. Hazen recorded his personal best time in the steeplechase during the conference championship, jumping up to no. 5 in the K-State all-time top-10 with a time of 8:51.57.

The men’s 4×400 relay, freshman Nen Matlock and seniors Kyle Gale, Jaimie Omalla and Eugene Omalla, will compete together for just the fourth time this season. The team ran their fastest time of 3:04.42 during the Mt SAC Relays on April 20, which is the fourth fastest time in the K-State records. Gale and E. Omalla will also run individually in the 400 meter dash. Sophomore Jourdin Edwards will also compete as a sprinter in 400 meter hurdles.

The NCAA West Preliminary will be streamed all four days on ESPN+ at the start of the track events.

How to follow the ‘Cats: For complete information on the K-State Track and Field and Cross Country Teams, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team’s social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Threads, Facebook and Instagram.