Live NCAA Track & Field Championships updates: Florida, Texas, Kentucky top teams

Collegiate athletes are in Eugene this week to compete in the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships meet in Eugene, Ore. The Register-Guard will be on site providing live updates and information from Hayward Field throughout the four-day event.

When Abby Steiner took the baton for the third leg of the 4x400 relay, Kentucky sat in fourth place and well off the pace being set by Texas and Arkansas. When Steiner was done, the Wildcats were so far in front that nobody could catch them.

Steiner – who won the 200 meters and finished third in the 100 – ran a sizzling lap of 48.92 seconds to put Kentucky in front and the Wildcats hung on for victory in 3:22.55, the second-fastest time ever recorded at the NCAA meet.

Texas finished second with a time of 3:23.35, Arkansas was third (3:23.69), Texas A&M was fourth (3:24.55) and South Carolina was fifth (3:25.78).

Florida finished last in the long relay but it had no impact on the team standings, where the Gators ran away with the national title with 74 points. Texas finished second with 64 team points and Kentucky was third with 50. LSU and Texas A&M tied for fourth place at 39 points, with Arkansas sixth (38) and Texas Tech seventh (36).

Tuohy wins 5,000 title for NC State

NC State sophomore Katelyn Tuohy surged into the lead with 600 meters to go and coasted to victory in the 5,000 meters Saturday.

Tuohy and Florida freshman Parker Valby pulled away from the rest of the field during the last lap, but it was Tuohy who showed off her closing speed with a victory in 15:18.39. Valby finished second in a personal-best 15:20.10.

Oklahoma State sophomore Taylor Roe (15:24.41) narrowly edged Alabama junior Mercy Chelangat (15:24.54) at the line for third place. Arkansas junior Lauren Gregory finished fifth in 15:28.33, Colorado senior Abby Nichols was sixth (15:33.09) and New Mexico sophomore Gracelyn Larkin was seventh (15:33.10).

NC State had five runners qualify for Saturday’s final, with freshman Marlee Starliper finishing ninth (15:36.51), junior Samantha Bush in 10th (15:42.61), senior Hannah Steelman in 11th (15:43.45) and junior Savannah Shaw in 20th (16:02.32).

Ducks get two top-10 performances in triple jump

Oregon had two chances to score during Saturday’s triple jump final, but the Ducks ultimately settled for just two team points courtesy of Dominique Ruotolo’s seventh-place finish.

Ruotolo posted a mark of 43-6½ and teammate Lexi Ellis jumped 43-3¼ to finish 10th.

Florida sophomore Jasmine Moore won the event with her leap of 46-11¾ and the Texas Tech duo of Ruth Usoro (45-9½) and Ruta Lasmane (45-7) finished second and third, respectively.

Texas freshman Ackelia Smith finished fourth (45-3), Georgia junior Titiana Marsh was fifth (44-5½) and Florida senior Natricia Hooper was sixth (44-1¼).

Hall easily wins women's heptathlon title

There wasn’t a lot of drama during the final three events of the women’s heptathlon Saturday, with Florida sophomore Anna Hall extending her already sizeable lead and running away with the NCAA title.

Hall came up short in her bid to set a new collegiate record, but her 6,385 points were 446 better than runner-up Ida Eikeng of Washington. The all-time college record of 6,527 was set by Diane Guthrie of George Mason in 1995, and Hall has gotten as close as 6,458 this season.

Hall won the long jump with a mark of 20-7 to get started Saturday and she finished fourth in the javelin with a toss of 140-7. She was in position to break the all-time scoring record, but she faded to 10th place in the 800 meters, which she had to run just 13 minutes after her second-place finish in the 400 hurdles.

Duke senior Erin Marsh finished third in the heptathlon with 5,929 points – just 10 behind Eikeng – while Stanford junior Allie Jones was fourth (5,823) and Florida junior Sterling Lester was fifth (5,751).

Distin wins high jump title for Texas A&M

Texas A&M junior Lamara Distin outlasted Middle Tennessee State senior Abigail Kwarteng to win the NCAA high jump title Saturday with a clearance of 6-4¾.

Distin passed on the first two heights and elected to start at 5-10¾, and she needed just one attempt to go over the bar on each of her six jumps before eventually scratching at 6-6¾ with the rest of the field out of the competition.

Kwarteng finished second with a clearance of 6-3½, South Carolina sophomore Rachel Glenn was third (6-1¼), Villanova junior Sanaa Barnes was fourth (6-0), Ball State junior Charity Griffith was fifth (6-0), while Cornell’s Marguerite Lorenzo, Nebraska’s Jenna Rogers and LSU’s Nyagoa Bayak tied for sixth (6-0).

Van Klinken dominates in discus victory

Arizona State senior Jorinde Van Klinken obliterated the field in the discus Saturday, throwing 203-11 to easily win her third NCAA title after capturing both indoor and outdoor titles in the last year.

Van Klinken unleashed her winning throw on her fifth attempt to move past Kansas senior Alexandra Emilianov, who threw 191-9 on her fifth attempt and eventually settled for second place.

Texas Tech junior Malin Smith finished third with a mark of 186-3, Oklahoma senior Lauren Jones was fourth (181-11) and Texas Tech senior Seasons Usual was fifth (181-7).

One day after taking fifth place in the shot put, Oregon sophomore Jaida Ross finished ninth in the discus with a throw of 176-8.

Wilson tops Hall in 400 hurdles showdown

Arkansas sophomore Britton Wilson came into the NCAA meet with the fastest 400 hurdles time in the nation this season and she left Hayward Field a national champion.

Wilson held off Florida heptathlete and hurdles specialist Anna Hall to win the long hurdles in 53.86 seconds Saturday, just off her season- and lifetime-best time of 53.75 from the SEC Championships in May.

Hall tried to make up some ground late in the race but settled for second place in 54.76. Duke senior Lauren Hoffman finished third in 55.58, Kentucky junior Masai Russell was fourth (55.83) and Texas A&M senior Deshae Wise was fifth (55.99).

Schoffield makes late pass for 800 victory

Boise State senior Kristie Schoffield had to be patient during Saturday’s 800 final with Baylor senior Aaliyah Miller in the lead for most of the race, but Schoffield made her move with about 80 meters remaining to pull away for the victory in 2:01.09.

Miller shot to the front of the pack and maintained a large lead until she started to run out of steam through the final turn. She faded down the home stretch and finished seventh in 2:03.05.

Villanova senior McKenna Keegan and Oklahoma State freshman Gabija Galvydyte went with Schoffield as she moved into the lead down the home stretch, but neither could reel in the senior as she raced to her first NCAA title. Keegan finished second in 2:01.71 and Galvydyte was third in 2:01.76.

Florida junior Imogen Barrett took fourth place in 2:02.05, Kennesaw State junior Sarah Hendrick was fifth (2:02.19) and Texas junior Valery Tobias was sixth (2:02.74).

Florida's Diggs pulls away for win in 400

Florida sophomore Talitha Diggs found another gear over the final 50 meters to win an NCAA title in the 400 meters Saturday.

Diggs was even with Kentucky junior Alexis Holmes and Texas A&M sophomore Charokee Young coming out of the final turn, and Holmes still had the lead halfway down the home stretch before Diggs turned on the afterburners and left everyone else in the dust.

Diggs won with a personal-best time of 49.99 seconds, making her only the second collegiate woman to crack the 50-second barrier this season. Young, who ran 49.87 in April for the fastest time of the year, finished second Saturday in 50.65.

Texas junior Kennedy Simon finished third in 50.69 and teammate Stacey Ann Williams took fifth in 51.13. Holmes faded to fourth in 50.71, with UCLA senior Shae Anderson in sixth (51.50) and Arkansas freshman Rosey Effiong in seventh (51.55).

Oregon's Nelson finishes second in 100 meters

Six-thousandths of a second was all that separated Oregon’s Kemba Nelson from an NCAA title in the 100 meters Saturday.

Facing a loaded field, Nelson ran 11.020 seconds to finish just behind race winner Julien Alfred of Texas, who took first place in 11.014.

Kentucky junior Abby Steiner finished third in 11.08, Texas Tech sophomore Rosemary Chukwuma was fourth (11.14) and LSU sophomore Favour Ofili was fifth (11.17).

Nelson’s performance was all the more impressive considering she was facing a field that had produced five of the 10 fastest times in NCAA meet history during Thursday’s preliminaries.

LSU's Armstrong hangs on for victory in 100 hurdles

LSU sophomore Alia Armstrong shot out of the blocks and held off a spirited challenge from USC’s Jasmine Jones to win the 100 hurdles in 12.57 seconds.

Armstrong took the early lead and seemed destined for an easy victory, but Jones closed her down over the final four hurdles to make things interesting at the line. Jones eventually settled for second place in 12.66.

Kentucky junior Masai Russell finished third in 12.81, North Carolina A&T senior Paula Salmon was fourth (12.85), Texas A&M senior Kaylah Robinson was fifth (12.86), Wisonsin sophomore Destiny Huven was sixth (12.92) and Texas Tech junior Demisha Roswell was seventh (12.94).

BYU's Wayment smashes NCAA record in 3,000 steeplechase

Cheered on by the Hayward Field crowd down the final straightaway, BYU senior Courtney Wayment set a new collegiate record in the 3,000 steeplechase with a time of 9:16.00, which is also the fifth-fastest time ever run by an American woman.

Wayment went to the front of the pack early and no one could keep up as she slowly separated from the rest of the field. She led by about 100 meters as she rounded the final turn and the crowd began to cheer in anticipation of a record-setting performance. Wayment threw her hands in the air as she crossed the finish line to break the old collegiate record of 9:24.41, set by Courtney Frerichs of New Mexico in 2016.

Yale junior Kayley Delay finished second in 9:25.08, West Virginia sophomore Ceili McCabe was third in 9:31.14 and Colorado junior Madison Boreman was fourth in 9:33.02. All three runners established new lifetime bests.

Oregon State junior Kaylee Mitchell finished sixth in a personal-best 9:34.59, becoming the first Beaver to score points at the NCAA outdoor meet in 40 years. Teammate Grace Fetherstonhaugh finished 10^th in a PR of 9:37.56.

Of the 12 steeplechase participants, 10 set new personal records as the field tried desperately to keep up with Wayment.

Vissa claims victory in women's 1,500 meters

Ole Miss sophomore Sintayehu Vissa made her move with 300 meters remaining and held off a determined field to win the 1,500 Saturday afternoon.

Arkansas senior Krissy Gear led for most of the race with Vissa, Colorado senior Micaela DeGenero and Stanford senior Christina Aragon staying close at the front of the pack. Gear had the lead as the bell sounded for the final lap, but Vissa and the rest of the chase pack passed her on the back straightaway and Vissa held on for the win in 4:09.42.

DeGenero finished second in 4:09.62, Aragon was third in 4:10.00 and Gear was fourth in 4:10.06. Stanford senior Julia Heymach finished fifth in 4:10.58, with five of the top six runners all logging season-best times.

Oregon starts Day 4 with third-place finish in 4x100 relay

It wasn’t quite the start the Ducks wanted, but Oregon kicked off the fourth and final day of the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships with a third-place finish in the women’s 4x100 relay.

Oregon’s team of Jadyn Mays, Kemba Nelson, Jasmin Reed and Jasmine Montgomery was in contention heading into the final exchange, but Texas pulled away down the stretch behind a strong anchor leg from Kynnedy Flannel and the Longhorns won in 42.42 seconds.

Kentucky finished second in 42.55 and Oregon just pipped LSU at the finish line, taking third place in a season-best 42.59 to 42.62 for the Tigers.

Florida State claimed fifth place in 43.18, Ohio State was sixth (43.52), UCF was seventh (43.69) and Coastal Carolina was eighth (43.78).

Oregon's Kemba Nelson seeking 100 and 4x100 titles

The women are were search of their titles on the final day of the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships Saturday.

The Ducks' Kemba Nelson will have double duty on Saturday. The Oregon senior qualified for the finals in the 100 meters and 4x100 relay, the Ducks’ only sprinter to advance in two events.

Nelson won her 100 semifinal 10.97 and ran the second leg of the 4x100 that recorded a season-best 42.64 to win its heat. The rely also included Jadyn Mays, Jasmin Reed and Jasmine Montgomery.

The second day of the heptathlon begins at 10:30 a.m., field events start at 2 p.m. and track events begin at 2:30 p.m.

NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships

Where: Hayward Field at University of Oregon in Eugene

Meet schedule: Men compete Wednesday and Friday and women compete Thursday and Saturday.

Where to watch on TV

Saturday — Day 2 women, 2:30 p.m., ESPN

MEN'S FINALS UPDATES - Friday

Gators cap team title with victory in 4x400 relay

Champion Allison brought home Florida’s national championship in style.

Running the anchor leg of the 4x400 relay, Allison took the baton with the lead and blazed around the track in 44.06 seconds to help the Gators set both facility and meet records with a winning time of 2:58.88.

USC finished second with a season-best time of 2:59.98, Alabama was third (3:00.17), Texas was fourth (3:01.69) and Texas A&M was fifth (3:01.72).

That final victory on Friday night capped a tremendous weekend for the Gators, who captured the team title with 54 points. Texas finished second in the team standings with 38 points, Tennessee was third (34), Florida State was fourth (33), Georgia was fifth (32) and LSU was sixth (31).

Hacker outkicks Beadlescomb to win 3,000

Wisconsin senior Olin Hacker and Michigan State senior Morgan Beadlescomb broke away from the rest of the pack near the end of the 5,000 on Friday night and staged a one-on-one duel down the final straightaway, with Hacker outkicking his counterpart to win an NCAA title in 13:27.73.

Hacker closed with a 54.62-second last lap to pull away from the field and eventually overtake Beadlescomb, who finished second in 13:28.38.

Northern Arizona sophomore Nico Young took third place in 13:28.62, Stanford sophomore Ky Robinson was fourth (13:30.23) and Air Force junior Sam Gilman was fifth (13:30.82). Washington got a seventh-place finish from junior Brian Fay (13:31.39) and Stanford sophomore Cole Sprout finished ninth (13:32.53).

Ihemeje comes up short in triple jump title defense

Oregon sophomore Emmanuel Ihemeje knew the mark he needed to beat in order to defend his NCAA triple jump title, but even the partisan hometown crowd couldn’t propel him to victory this time around.

TCU senior Chengetayi Mapaya threw down an early gauntlet with a jump of 56-7½ on his third attempt, and realistically only Ihemeje could catch him. The Oregon sophomore put down a mark of 55-10½ on his fifth jump but could only muster 53-5½ on his final attempt as Mapaya won his first triple jump title.

LSU freshman Apalos Edwards finished third at 53-9¼, Stanford junior Keyshawn King was fourth (53-6½) and Missouri junior Georgi Nachev was fifth (53-1).

Youngsters dominate discus competition

The young bucks stole the show in Friday’s discus final, with freshmen landing in the top three spots on the podium.

Virginia’s Claudio Romero won his first NCAA title with a throw of 217-1 to barely edge runner-up Mykolas Alekna of Cal, who threw 217-0. Arizona State freshman Ralford Mullings finished third with a throw of 204-11.

Those were the only athletes to break the 200-foot mark, with Cal junior Iffy Joyner finishing fourth (199-3), Minnesota junior Kaleb Siekmeier in fifth (196-10), Miami junior Jeffrey Williams in sixth (196-5) and Washington senior Elijah Mason in seventh (195-6).

Hall leads women's heptathlon going into Saturday

Florida sophomore Anna Hall ran a lifetime best in the 200 meters Friday night to extend her lead in the women’s heptathlon, which concludes with three more events on Saturday.

Hall had the fastest 200 time of the day at 23.13 seconds, followed by Florida teammate Sterling Lester in 23.29. Washington junior Ida Eikeng was third in 23.81 and Duke senior Erin Marsh was fourth in 23.86.

Those results kept Hall in first place with 3,922 points, followed by Marsh (3,674), Eikeng (3,640) and Lester (3,580).

Earlier in the day, Hall finished third in the 100 (13.15), first in the high jump (5-11¼) and third in the shot put (44-5¼). The heptathlon concludes on Saturday with the long jump, javelin and 800 meters.

Fahnbulleh doubles up with two sprint victories

Florida sophomore Joseph Fahnbulleh was up to his usual tricks Friday night, hunting down the leaders in the 200 meters and pulling away for a resounding victory to sweep the two sprinting events.

Fahnbulleh won the 100 in similar fashion earlier in the evening, but the 200 result was even more emphatic. The sophomore rounded the final turn and hit the boosters as he blazed to victory in 19.83, which is the fourth-fastest time in collegiate history and the third-best time in the world this year.

Georgia sophomore Matthew Boling finished second in 20.13, Stanford freshman Udodi Onwuzurike was third in 20.15 and Texas senior Micaiah Harris was fourth in 20.45, but none of them really stood a chance once Fahnbulleh hit top speed over the final 80 meters.

Burrell successfully defends his 400 hurdles title

LSU sophomore Sean “Squirrel” Burrell runs his best when the stakes are the highest.

Burrell, the defending NCAA champion in the 400 hurdles, almost didn’t advance out of the SEC Championships with an eighth-place finish last month, but he rallied to finish third at the East Preliminary meet and then ran his fastest time of the season in the preliminaries on Wednesday.

Burrell was back on the track Friday night to defend his hurdles title and he did it with aplomb, withstanding a late challenge from Texas Tech senior Malik Metivier to win his second NCAA title with a time of 48.70. Metivier finished second in 49.13.

Oklahoma senior Isaiah Levingston finished third in 49.20, Baylor freshman Nathaniel Ezekiel was fourth (49.24) and Houston senior Quivell Jordan-Bacot was fifth (49.52).

Shankar closes senior season with high jump title

Kansas State senior Tejaswin Shankar had a long wait between NCAA titles.

Shankar won a high jump title as a freshman back in 2018, but finished as runner-up in each of the last two national meets. Friday night he was back atop the medal stand after clearing 7-5¼ to win the high jump in a showdown against Georgia senior Darius Carbin, who finished second at 7-4¼.

Both high jumpers cleared 7-4¼ on their first attempt but failed on three cracks at 7-5¼ before Shankar won the jump-off by going over the bar on his first try while Carbin clipped it on his final attempt.

Auburn junior Dontavious Hill, Oklahoma senior Vernon Turner and Washington State senior Mitch Jacobson all cleared 7-3, with Hill taking third, Turner in fourth and Jacobson in fifth based on misses.

Texas Tech's Zahafi outkicks the field to win 800 title

Five runners logged lifetime bests in the 800 meters Friday night, but none of them could outkick Texas Tech senior Moad Zahafi.

Texas A&M sophomore Brandon Miller took the lead on the last lap, followed by Zahafi and Mississippi State junior Navasky Anderson. Zahafi surged to the front with 200 meters to go and barreled down the home stretch with Miller and Anderson in tow. Ultimately, neither runner could make up any ground and Zahafi took home the title in 1:44.49.

Anderson finished second in 1:45.02 and Miller was third in 1:45.09. Iowa State junior Jason Gomez claimed fourth in 1:46.34, Villanova sophomore Sean Dolan was fifth (1:46.38) and Arizona State freshman Dayton Carlson was sixth (1:46.72).

Anderson, Gomez, Dolan, Carlson and Princeton freshman Samuel Rodman all ran personal bests in the race and Miller ran a season best.

Ross wins back-to-back titles in the 400

North Carolina A&T junior Randolph Ross defended his NCAA title in the 400 meters Friday, rounding the final turn and holding off two challengers to win in a season-best time of 44.13.

Florida junior Champion Allison couldn’t make up any ground in the final 100 meters and eventually finished second in 44.41, with Georgia junior Elija Godwin running a lifetime best 44.50 to claim third.

Texas junior Jonathan Jones finished fourth in 44.93, Florida sophomore Ryan Willie was fifth (45.00), Oklahoma sophomore Richard Kuykendoll was sixth (45.73), UTEP sophomore Jevaughn Powell was seventh (45.81) and Ohio State senior Tyler Johnson was eighth (45.83).

Florida's Fahnbulleh surges to victory in 100, Williams fades

Florida sophomore Joseph Fahnbulleh takes a little while to hit top speed – but once he does, no one has better closing speed.

Fahnbulleh used his long strides to walk down the field in the 100 meters Friday night, surging past the competition in the final 20 meters to win an NCAA title in 10.00 seconds.

At 6 feet, 2 inches, Fahnbulleh bears at least a passing resemblance to perhaps the greatest sprinter of all time – Usain Bolt. Both runners tend to be slow out of the blocks, but early deficits quickly evaporate as the long-striders pick up speed with alarming pace.

That was the story on Friday night as Oregon’s Micah Williams and Tennessee’s Favour Ashe flew out of the blocks and took the early lead, but Fahnbulleh came flying down lane 7 and out-leaned both Ashe and North Carolina A&T’s Javonte Harding at the line.

Ashe finished second in 10.075 and Harding was third in 10.079. Florida State junior JoVaughn Martin took fourth in 10.09, Florida senior Dedrick Vanover was fifth (10.16), Georgia sophomore Matthew Boling was sixth (10.18) and Williams faded to seventh (10.19).

Cunningham comes close to NCAA record in 110 hurdles victory

Florida State senior Trey Cunningham and LSU senior Eric Edwards Jr. went stride-for-stride in a sizzling-fast 110 hurdles race, but Cunningham prevailed at the line after Edwards clipped the final hurdle with his trail foot.

Cunningham won in 13.00 and was just 0.02 seconds off the all-time collegiate record of 12.98, set by Florida’s Grant Holloway in 2019. It was Cunningham’s second straight title after winning the 60-meter hurdles at the NCAA Indoor Championships in March.

Edwards finished second in 13.15, Michigan junior Joshua Zeller was third (13.26), and Clemson teammates Giano Roberts (13.442) and Lafranz Campbell (13.444) finished fourth and fifth, respectively.

Jaziri comes from behind to win 3,000 steeplechase

Montana State junior Duncan Hamilton led nearly wire-to-wire in the 3,000 steeplechase Friday night, only to be overtaken on the final straightaway by Eastern Kentucky junior Ahmed Jaziri, who ran a lifetime best of 8:18.70 to win the NCAA title.

In fact, the top eight finishers all ran personal bests on Friday, with Hamilton finishing second in 8:18.878 and Georgetown sophomore Parker Stokes taking third in 8:18.880.

Hamilton went to the front of the pack from the start and seemed to be in control the whole way, but Jaziri and Stokes started pressing him as they headed into the final water jump. All three made the jump cleanly, then Jaziri found another gear after clearing the final hurdle with 70 meters to go. Hamilton edged Stokes at the finish line by 0.002 seconds.

Oklahoma State senior Ryan Smeeton finished fourth in 8:20.06, Princeton senior Ed Trippas was fifth (8:20.29), BYU sophomore Kenneth Rooks was sixth (8:22.56), while Minnesota teammates Alec Basten (8:23.86) and Matthew Wilkinson (8:25.03) finished seventh and eighth, respectively.

Three Huskies place in 1,500 finals led by Waskom's victory

It was a great start for Pac-12 athletes Friday with Washington sophomore Joe Waskom winning the 1,500 title.

Waskom emerged from a bunched field and surged to the front with 200 meters to go, and he held off a late push from Ole Miss junior Mario Garcia Romo to win in 3:45.58. Romo finished second in 2:45.69.

Washington’s Luke Houser led for the majority of the race but Waskom began making his move around the 1,200-meter mark, passing on the outside and then pressing the pace for the final 200 meters. Princeton senior Sam Ellis and Wake Forest junior Thomas Vanoppen went with him but couldn’t match the pace down the final straight. Then Romo came blazing along the inside rail to pass them both and nearly edge Waskom at the line.

Ellis finished third in 3:45.82 and Vanoppen was fourth in 3:46.03. Houser faded to fifth in 3:46.13 and Washington teammate Nathan Green finished seventh in 3:46.26, giving the Huskies 16 team points from the event.

The 1,500 was missing one big name, with collegiate record holder Eliud Kipsang of Alabama failing to qualify out of Wednesday’s preliminaries. He ran 3:33.74 in April to break the old mark of 3:34.68, set by Notre Dame’s Yared Nuguse at last year’s ACC Championships.

Trojans open Day 3 with victory in 4x100 relay

USC held off a late charge from Florida to win the 4x100 relay and capture the first title of the night Friday on Day 3 of the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships at Hayward Field.

The Trojans had a solid lead at the last exchange but Florida’s Joseph Fahnbulleh ran a scorching anchor leg and nearly caught USC’s Johnnie Blockburger at the line, but the Trojans hung on to win in 38.49 with the Gators second in 38.52.

Houston ran a season best of 38.64 to finish third, Tennessee was fourth in 38.83 and Baylor was fifth in 38.99.

Day 3 features Ducks looking for 100 and triple jump titles

Day 3 of the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships meet Friday at Hayward Field will put a pair of Oregon stars in the spotlight, as Micah Williams and Emmanuel Ihemeje are favored to win national titles in the 100 meters and triple jump, respectively.

The opening round of the heptathlon gets going for the women at 1 p.m., followed by 14 men's finals beginning with the high jump at 5:30 p.m. The first event on the track is the 4x100 relay at 6:02 p.m.

DAY 2: WOMEN'S DAY 1 and DECATHLON FINALS

Women's first day ends with Arizona State in lead

All the top seeds advanced in the 4x400 preliminaries, led by Texas A&M’s team of Tierra Robinson-Jones, Jaevin Reed, Jania Martin and Charokee Young running a time of 3:25.63.

Kentucky was close behind with a time of 3:25.67, while Arkansas (3:27.52), Texas (3:27.88), Florida (3:28.40), Baylor (3:29.03) and UCLA (3:29.17) all breaking the 3:30 barrier. Howard was the final qualifier with a time of 3:30.60.

The first day of women's competition ended with Arizona State in first place in the team standings with 18 points, followed by Virginia Tech, Nebraska and Florida with 14 apiece. Cal is in fifth place with 12 points, while Ohio State, Alabama, Louisville and BYU are tied for sixth with 10 points.

Louisville's Leon wins pole vault title after long day

Louisville senior Gabriela Leon outlasted the rest of the field during a marathon pole vault final, winning with a final clearance of 15-1.

The pole vault competition lasted three hours, with four vaulters advancing to take a crack at 15-1. Leon went over on her first try and the rest of the competition fell away. Arkansas sophomore Amanda Fassold and LSU senior Lisa Gunnarson each cleared 14-11 but Fassold took second place on callbacks, with Gunnarson in third.

Virginia Tech senior Rachel Baxter finished fourth with a 14-9 clearance and teammate Julia Fixsen was fifth at 14-5¼.

BYU's Riner wins javelin title with her first throw

Just like with shot put, the NCAA javelin title was decided on the very first throw by BYU senior Ashton Riner, whose toss of 191-1 was enough to hold off the rest of the field through six rounds.

Riner came into the meet with the best throw of the season, a 198-0 mark she set in April. She didn’t quite reach that distance on Thursday, but it was enough to hold off runner-up Maddie Harris of Nebraska, who threw 189-3 on her third toss but couldn’t improve on that mark.

North Carolina junior Madison Wiltrout finished third at 185-3, Florida International sophomore Rhema Otabor was fourth (183-5) and Florida State senior Sara Zabarino was fifth (182-5).

Stanford got points from senior Virginia Miller, who finished seventh with a throw of 177-7, and Washington State freshman Valentina Barrios Bornacelli took eighth at 177-3.

Ohio State's Aquilla sets new collegiate record in shot put

The shot put title was never really in doubt, with Ohio State senior Adelaide Aquilla setting a new collegiate record of 64-5¼ on her first throw.

Aquilla, who also won the shot put at both the NCAA indoor and outdoor meets in 2021, broke the collegiate record of 63-10¼ that was set by Arizona State’s Maggie Ewen in 2018.

Arizona State senior Jorinde Van Klinken threw 60-11½ on her fourth attempt and no one else broke the 60-foot mark. Van Klinken finished second, Nebraska freshman Axelina Johansson was third (59-3) and Virginia freshman Maria Deaviz was fourth (58-11½).

Oregon sophomore Jaida Ross set a new lifetime best with a throw of 58-6 to finish fifth. It was the fourth time in the last five meets that Ross has established a new PR. Oregon teammate Mine De Klerk finished 13th with a throw of 55-4¼.

Alabama's Chelangat makes up ground to win 10,000 title

One day after a similar strategy backfired for Campbell’s Athanas Kioko in the final of the men’s 10,000 meters, Washington junior Haley Herberg went out fast in the women’s distance race and tried to dictate the tempo before eventually being reeled in by the chase pack.

Alabama junior Mercy Chelangat, last year’s runner-up, caught Herberg with 2,400 meters to go and proceeded to pull away from everyone, winning the 10,000 title in 32:37.08.

Rice sophomore Grace Forbes finished second in 32:48.07, Michigan State senior Jenna Magness was third (32:59.96), Colorado freshman Emily Covert was fourth (33:14.64), NC State junior Alexandra Hays was fifth (33:16.16), Oklahoma State sophomore Gabby Hentemann was sixth (33:18.04) and Herberg faded to seventh (33:20.33).

NCAA Track & Field Men's Day 1: Good for Max Vollmer but not great for Oregon Ducks

Florida's Moore adds another long jump title

Florida sophomore Jasmine Moore swept the long jump and triple jump titles at the NCAA Indoor Championships in March, and now she will have a chance to sweep the outdoor titles as well.

Moore uncorked a leap of 22-¾ on her first long jump attempt Thursday and held on to win against a very competitive field.

Now she will come back on Saturday and go after the triple jump title.

Texas A&M senior Deborah Acquah jumped 21-8 on her fifth attempt, but no one could budge Moore from the top of the long jump leaderboard. She eventually passed on her sixth and final attempt when no one else equaled her opening mark.

Acquah finished second, Texas senior Tyra Gittens was third (21-6¾) and Texas Tech senior Monae’ Nichols was fourth (21-5½). Florida got some extra team points from sophomore Claire Bryant, who finished fifth with a jump of 21-4¼.

Kentucky's Steiner sets NCAA meet record in 200

Fresh off qualifying in the 100, Kentucky junior Abby Steiner set an NCAA meet record in the 200 by running 22.02 to win that event and qualify for another Saturday final.

LSU sophomore Favour Ofili, who set the national collegiate record in April (21.96), finished second with a time of 22.13. Texas junior Kynnedy Flannel and Ohio State senior Anavia Battle went virtually step-for-step in the first heat of the 200, with Flannel winning in 22.25 to Battle's 22.26.

Other qualifiers included Texas sophomore Kevona Davis (22.38), Florida State’s Edidiong Odiong (22.43), North Carolina A&T freshman Grace Nwokocha (22.44), Coastal Carolina sophomore Melissa Jefferson (22.54) and Tennessee sophomore Joella Lloyd (22.66).

Oregon senior Iman Brown ran 22.96 and finished 15th, and teammate Jasmine Montgomery finished 19th in 23.15.

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Nation's fastest 400 hurdlers don't disappoint

The two fastest 400 hurdlers in the country this season finished 1-2 in the preliminaries for that event Thursday, with Florida sophomore Anna Hall running 54.48 and Arkansas sophomore Britton Wilson running 54.72.

Kentucky junior Masai Russell, who has the third-fastest time in the nation, ran 56.15 to win the first heat and also qualify for Saturday’s final. Duke senior Lauren Hoffman qualified third overall in 55.47 and Arizona senior Shannon Meisberger was fourth in 55.79.

Oregon sophomore Alexandra Webster ran 57.25 but finished 11th, just three spots out of the final qualifying time. Howard junior Jessica Wright was actually slower in 57.35 but qualified automatically by finishing second in the third heat of the day.

Boise State's Schoffield top 800 qualifier

Boise State senior Kristie Schoffield and Villanova senior McKenna Keegan pushed each other to the two fastest times of the day in a quick third heat of the 800 prelims on Thursday.

Schoffield won in 2:01.79 and Keegan ran a season-best time of 2:01.82 to finish second, while third-place finisher Imogen Barrett of Florida (2:02.24) and fourth-place Sarah Hendrick of Kennesaw State (2:02.34) both qualified on time due to the pace of the race.

Oklahoma State freshman Gabija Galvydyte won the second heat in 2:02.46 and qualified fifth, while LSU junior Katy-Ann McDonald (2:02.51) and Baylor senior Aaliyah Miller (2:03.05) also qualified out of the second heat.

Texas junior Valery Tobias won the first heat in 2:03.50 and Florida junior Gabrielle Wilkinson was second in 2:03.70 to earn each runner a spot in Saturday’s final.

Florida's Talitha Diggs leads talented 400 final qualifiers

Saturday’s 400 final will be loaded with talent after some fast times in the prelims.

Florida sophomore Talitha Diggs ran a sizzling 50.08 to win the first heat, followed by Texas junior Stacey Ann Williams in 50.18. Texas teammate Kennedy Simon ran 50.45 to win the third heat and Texas A&M sophomore Charokee Young ran 50.46 to win heat two.

Young has emerged from the shadow of former teammate Athing Mu, who turned professional after winning a pair of gold medals at the Tokyo Olympics. Young’s time of 49.87 back in April leads the nation this season and is the second-fastest time in the world this year.

Kentucky junior Alexis Holmes finished fifth in 50.75, and the other qualifiers were UCLA sophomore Shae Anderson (50.94), Arkansas freshman Rosey Effiong (51.06) and Baylor freshman Kavia Francis (51.17).

Oregon's Kemba Nelson finishes fourth in 100 prelims

There were some sizzling heats in the 100 preliminaries Thursday, with seven sprinters – including all three winners – clocking under 11 seconds.

Oregon senior Kemba Nelson ran 10.97 in the first heat and was still the slowest of the three heat winners. Texas sophomore Julien Alfred ran 10.90 to win the first heat and Kentucky junior Abby Steiner also ran 10.90 to win heat two.

Coastal Carolina sophomore Melissa Jefferson qualified third overall with a time of 10.96 and North Carolina A&T freshman Grace Nwokocha was fourth in 10.97. Texas Tech sophomore Rosemary Chukwuma also cracked the 11-second barrier with a time of 10.99.

USC senior Celera Barnes was the odd man out, finishing just outside a qualifying spot in 10th with a time of 11.13.

Oregon junior Jadyn Mays finished 19th with a time of 11.28 and freshman Jasmine Montgomery was 21st in 11.37.

Favorites advance in 100 hurdle preliminaries

There weren’t many surprises in the 100 hurdle prelims on Thursday, with LSU sophomore Alia Armstrong running 12.55 to finish first among nine qualifiers for Saturday’s final. Armstrong ran a wind-aided 12.33 earlier this season to lead the nation.

She was followed by North Carolina A&T senior Paula Salmon, who won the third heat in 12.68, and Kentucky junior Masai Russell, who won heat two in 12.77. USC sophomore Jasmine Jones had the third-fastest prelim time overall at 12.72.

The only real surprise was Baylor freshman Ackera Nugent withdrawing before the race. She had run the third-fastest time in the nation this season at 12.49 but lane three was vacant in the third and final heat.

Beavers get two qualifiers in 3,000 steeplechase

Oregon State junior Kaylee Mitchell ran a lifetime best of 9:41.51 to win the second heat of the 3,000 steeplechase preliminaries, and teammate Grace Fetherstonhaugh qualified out of a fast first heat with a time of 9:45.17.

Arkansas senior Logan Jolly set a PR of 9:38.13 to win the first heat, followed by Notre Dame sophomore Olivia Markezich (9:40.81), West Virginia sophomore Ceili McCable (9:41.10) and BYU senior Courtney Wayment (9:41.21).

Fetherstonhaugh was the last automatic qualifier out of the first heat, finishing fifth. Colorado junior Madison Boreman finished sixth in 9:41.95 and also qualified for Saturday’s final.

Ducks finish fourth in 4x100 prelims, qualify for final

Oregon ran a season-best time of 42.64 in the 4x100 relay to finish fourth in Thursday’s preliminaries and qualify for Saturday’s final.

The Oregon team of Jadyn Mays, Kemba Nelson, Jasmin Reed and Jasmine Montgomery won heat number three and finished behind only Texas (42.34), Kentucky (42.53) and LSU (42.59), which came into the meet with the three fastest times in the country this season.

Also advancing to Saturday’s final were teams from Florida State, Ohio State, South Carolina, Central Florida and Coastal Carolina.

Stanford qualifies three runners in 1,500 prelims

All 12 runners in the second heat of the 1,500 prelims ran faster than everyone in heat one, but only seven runners advanced to Saturday’s final with both heats getting five automatic qualifiers and two other runners advancing on time.

Ole Miss sophomore Sintaheyu Vissa pulled away from the rest of the field in the final 200 meters to win heat two in 4:13.13. She was followed to the line by Stanford senior Julia Heymach (4:13.45), Arkansas senior Krissy Gear (4:13.48), Illinois sophomore Olivia Howell (4:13.76), Harvard freshman Maia Ramsden (4:14.12), Cincinnati senior Ellie Leather (4:14.20) and Stanford junior Melissa Tanaka (4:14.43).

Binghamton senior Emily Mackay was the fastest runner in the first heat with a time of 4:21.44, and four other runners qualified from that heat despite running slower than four non-qualifiers from the second heat.

Camryn Rogers top hammer thrower in collegiate history

Cal senior hammer thrower Camryn Rogers is in a league of her own.

Rogers reset her own collegiate record Thursday and outlasted five throwers who all set lifetime bests to win the women’s hammer final on the second day of the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

Rogers, who finished fifth at the Tokyo Olympics last year, first broke the collegiate hammer record at last year’s NCAA meet, then she bested that at the West Preliminary meet last month and smashed it again on Thursday. That gives Rogers the four longest hammer throws in women’s collegiate history.

Texas State senior Alyssa Wilson (245-4), Arizona State senior Beatrice Llano (236-6), Virginia Tech sophomore Sara Killinen (233-0), Arizona State junior Shelby Moran (231-7) and Ole Miss junior Jalani Davis (228-1) all set personal bests, but none of them were even close to Rogers’ throw of 254-10, which broke her old record of 250-10 and cemented her third NCAA title.

Vollmer no-heights in pole vault

Max Vollmer made a mistake he couldn’t recover from. He didn’t clear a bar in the pole vault to go scoreless in that event and essentially end his competition in the decathlon.

Vollmer was in 11th place with 5,737 points when he missed on three attempts at 15-1 1/2 — his first height of day — but dropped to 21st.

He bailed out on his first two attempts and then clipped the bar on his third attempt.

Vollmer hasn't dropped out of the event yet. He was seen warming up for the javelin.

Fouls hurt Vollmer's decathlon standings

Max Vollmer has taken a tumble in the decathlon standings.

The Oregon junior fouled on two of his three attempts in the discus and had to settle for a throw of 131-1 as he dropped from fifth place to 11th after seven events.

Vollmer has 5,737 points heading into the pole vault.

Decathlon begins with 110 hurdles

Max Vollmer remains in fifth place in the decathlon after the first event of Day 2 Thursday, as he scored 858 points in the 110-meter hurdles with a 14.93-second finish.

It wasn’t a great performance by Vollmer, who set his personal-record in the event earlier this season when he ran 14.40. Vollmer clipped his first hurdle Thursday and had to regain his stride as he finished last in his heat.

He didn’t lose ground in the overall standings, though he slipped further behind in points.

After six events, the top four continue to be Ayden Owens-Delerme of Arkansas at 5,474, Georgia’s Kyle Garland (5,432), Texas’ Leo Neugebauer (5,325) and California’s Hakim McMorris (5,182) as the competition moves to the discus.

Second day of NCAA championships begins Thursday

The second day of the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships features the continuation of the men's decathlon starting at 11:30 a.m. The remaining events run through the day and include 110 hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin and 1,500.

The women's competition begin with field events at 3 p.m. and track events start at 5:30 p.m.

Check back here throughout the day to stay up-to-date on the meet's progress.

Women's events:Top women's events and athletes to watch during NCAA Track & Field Championships

MEN'S DAY 1 UPDATES - Wednesday

Princeton brothers both finish on top in pole vault finals

Norwegian pole vaulters Sondre and Simen Guttormsen both finished in the top-five of Wednesday’s final in that event to lead a strong showing for Princeton.

Sondre Guttormsen won an NCAA pole vault title with his clearance of 18-10¼ and brother Simen finished fourth with a mark of 18-6½ to score 15 team points for the Tigers.

Sam Houston senior Clayton Fritsch finished second with a mark of 18-8¼ and Kentucky sophomore Keaton Daniel was third at 18-6½. Branson Ellis of Stephen F. Austin finished fifth (18-6½) and Zach McWhorter of BYU was sixth (18-4¼). Kansas had two vaulters in the top-10 with freshman Clayton Simms taking seventh place (18-½) and junior Zach Bradford finishing ninth (18-½).

The 15 points put Princeton in third place in the team standings after the first day of competition. Tennessee scored 21 points on Wednesday to move into first place and Florida State sits in second with 16. Texas (12), Alabama (11), Notre Dame (10), Penn (10) and Southeast Missouri (10) all hit double digits in the team scoring.

Men's preview:Top events and athletes to watch during men's NCAA Track & Field Championships

Favorites advance in 4x400 relay

There weren’t many surprises in the 4x400 preliminaries on Wednesday, with the top-ranked teams all advancing to Friday’s final.

Texas and Alabama finished 1-2 in a fast first heat, with Texas winning in 3:00.31 and Alabama taking second in 3:00.42. Florida, which set the all-time collegiate record earlier this season (2:58.53), finished third in 3:01.30. LSU took fourth (3:01.67) and Kentucky was fifth (3:01.68).

Iowa, Texas A&M, USC and North Carolina also advanced to the final.

Penn sophomore wins javelin title

The second flight of Wednesday’s javelin final featured 10 of the best throws of the day, with Penn sophomore Marc Minichello winning with his heave of 266-3.

Minichello went to the front of the pack on his third throw and was never really challenged. Virginia junior Ethan Dabbs moved into second place with a fifth throw of 261-5 and LSU sophomore Tzuriel Pedigo finished third at 258-10.

Wichita State junior Taran Taylor finished fourth (258-5), Baylor freshman Chinecherem Prosper Nnamdi was fifth (257-11) and UT-Arlington sophomore Arthur Petersen was sixth (250-5).

Oregon freshman Ty Hampton just missed out on a spot on the medal stand with a 10th-place finish, throwing 236-7.

Piperi leaves no doubt about shot put title

Texas senior Adrian Piperi added an NCAA title to his trophy case, winning Wednesday’s shot put final with a throw of 70-7¼ to come up just short of his personal best of 71-4.

Piperi finished second at last year’s NCAA Outdoor Championships and he added a second-place finish at the Indoor Championships in March. There would be no runner-up finish this time, as the senior took the lead with his very first throw and never relinquished it.

Arizona State junior Turner Washington finished second at 69-¾ and Alabama senior Isaac Odugbesan was third at 67-2¼. Tennessee junior Jordan West took fourth place with a mark of 66-6½ and Northern Iowa senior Darius King was fifth at 65-9.

Jacobs overtakes Nur for 10,000 victory

Campbell senior Athanas Kioko made a bold move Wednesday to go out hard in the 10,000 finals and leave the chase pack in the dust, but the gamble did not pay off.

Kioko sprinted to the front and established a 100-meter gap between himself and the rest of the field, leading for 19 laps before being reeled in by the pack.

Northern Arizona junior Abdihamid Nur and Notre Dame junior Dylan Jacobs surged to the front and led the rest of the way until Jacobs found another gear for the final 200 meters to win the NCAA title in 28:12.32. Jacobs closed out his victory with a final lap of 55.45.

Oklahoma State sophomore Alex Maier overtook Nur down the final straightaway to finish second in 28:12.68 and Nur was third in 28:14.51. Kioko faded to fifth with a time of 28:17.17.

Oregon senior Aaron Bienenfeld finished eighth in 28:19.05 to earn the Ducks a point in the team standings. Stanford sophomores Cole Sprout and Charles Hicks both finished in the top-six, with Sprout fourth in 28:14.89 and Hicks sixth in 28:14.89.

Pinnock wins long jump for Tennessee

Tennessee freshman Wayne Pinnock led the Volunteers to a big day in the long jump, winning the second field final Wednesday with a leap of 26-3½.

Pinnock’s teammates Carey McLeod finished fourth at 25-11 and Anthony Riley was eighth at 25-7¼ to give the Volunteers 18 team points in just the one event.

Pinnock finished in a tie with Florida State sophomore Jeremiah Davis, but won the NCAA title on a callback by virtue of having a better second jump. Pinnock’s second-best effort was 26-1½ to Davis’ mark of 25-10. Florida State also got a third-place finish from senior Isaac Grimes, who jumped 26-1¾.

Brandon Hicklin of North Carolina A&T finished fifth (25-9½), A’Nan Bridgett of Rutgers was sixth (25-9¼) and Stacy Brown Jr. of Texas was seventh (25-7½).

Harding disqualified in 200 prelims

North Carolina A&T sophomore Javonte Harding ran a lifetime best of 19.98 in the 200 but was disqualified for a lane violation during Wednesday’s preliminaries, putting a serious dent in the Aggies’ team title hopes.

Instead, Florida sophomore Joseph Fahnbulleh finished first in 20.10, using his long strides to break away from a loaded heat that included national leader Micaiah Harris of Texas (20.28) and third-seeded Matthew Boling of Georgia (20.24).

Ohio State senior Eric Harrison had the second-fastest time Wednesday at 20.18 and Stanford freshman Udodi Onwuzurike finished third in 20.24 after failing to qualify in the 100 earlier in the day.

Defending 400 hurdles champ Burrell advances in prelims

Defending NCAA 400 hurdles champion Sean "Squirrel" Burrell of LSU ran his fastest time of the season Wednesday to finish third and advance to Friday’s final.

Burrell hadn’t cracked 50 seconds this season and barely qualified for the East Regionals with an eighth-place finish at the SEC Championships, but he ran 49.19 on Wednesday to win his heat and finish third overall. Burrell won a national title last season with his PR of 47.85.

Texas Tech senior Malik Metivier finished first in a fast heat to take first place in 48.89 and Montana State senior Drake Schneider was second in 49.08.

Baylor freshman Nathaniel Ezekiel, who has the fastest time in the nation this season at 48.53, qualified for the final with a fifth-place finish in 49.44.

Favorites advance in 800 preliminaries

Mississippi State junior Navasky Anderson and Texas A&M junior Brandon Miller led the day’s fastest heat in the 800 to finish in the top two spots and qualify for Friday’s final.

Anderson ran 1:45.94 to claim first and Miller ran 1:46.00 to take second. Lipscomb senior Jonathan Schwind was third in 1:46.40 and Texas Tech senior Moad Zahafi – who owns the nation’s fastest time this season at 1:43.69 – finished fourth by winning his heat in 1:46.66.

Arizona State freshman Dayton Carlson was the final qualifier on time, running 1:47.45 to finish eighth. Oregon sophomore Luis Peralta finished 22nd in 1:50.02.

Top seeds advance in 400 preliminaries

Paired in the same preliminary heat of the 400, Florida junior Champion Allison and North Carolina A&T junior Randolph Ross blew away the field and coasted across the finish line side-by-side Wednesday before exchanging a congratulatory hug and moving on to Friday’s finals.

Two of the fastest 400 runners in the nation, Allison won the prelims with a time of 44.29 and Ross was second in 44.43. Both of those times came in under the season’s previous best mark (44.54), which was set by Texas junior Jonathan Jones, who finished third with a time of 44.97.

Fractions of seconds separated fourth place from sixth place, with UTEP sophomore Jevaughn Powell running 45.462, Georgia junior Elija Godwin running 45.465 and Florida sophomore Ryan Willie running 45.470.

Oregon's Williams blows away 100-meter field

The “Quad God” will run again on Friday.

Oregon sophomore Micah Williams blew away the field in the 100 preliminaries Wednesday, running a time of 10.03 to easily beat Florida State junior JoVaughn Martin (10.10) and Florida sophomore Joseph Fahnbulleh (10.11).

The next three places were decided by 0.003 seconds. Florida senior Dedrick Vanover was fourth in 10.146, while Houston sophomore Shaun Maswanganyi and Tennessee freshman Favour Ashe tied for fifth at 10.149.

New Orleans sophomore Ismael Kone, who had the third-fastest time in the nation this season (9.94), ran 10.23 and finished 15th to miss out on Friday’s final, and Texas senior Micaiah Harris, who had the nation’s fourth-fastest time (9.96), crashed out in 23rd place at 10.44.

Cunningham breezes to victory in 110 hurdles prelims

Florida State senior Trey Cunningham, who owns the fastest 110-meter hurdle time in the world this year, easily won that event during Wednesday’s preliminary heats.

Cunningham ran 13.21 to pull away from the field, setting up a showdown with LSU senior Eric Edwards Jr in Friday’s final. Edwards ran 13.33 to finish second in the prelims, followed by Syracuse sophomore Jaheem Hayles (13.44), Michigan junior Joshua Zeller (13.45) and Charlotte sophomore Justin Leaston (13.46).

The only big surprise was Arkansas junior Tre’Bien Gilbert, who had the nation’s fourth-fastest time this season, finishing 10th in 13.55 and missing out on the final qualifying spot to Clemson junior Giano Roberts, who ran 13.54.

Steeplechase won with nation's fastest time

Montana State junior Duncan Hamilton used a 63-second last lap to pull away from the field in the 3,000 steeplechase and win with a time of 8:23.13, which was a lifetime best and the fastest time in the nation this season.

Eastern Kentucky junior Ahmed Jaziri – who had the season’s previous best time – finished fourth in 8:26.27, just behind BYU sophomore Kenneth Rooks (8:24.88) and Georgetown sophomore Parker Stokes (8:26.04).

Washington State senior Colton Johnsen snuck into Friday’s final with an 11th-place finish in 8:31.64.

Collegiate record holder Kipsang crashes out of 1,500

One of the biggest shocks of Wednesday’s preliminaries was Alabama sophomore Eliud Kipsang, the collegiate record holder in the 1,500, fading to the back of the pack and finishing last in his heat to miss out on a spot in Friday’s final.

Kipsang set the college record of 3:33.74 at the Bryan Clay Invitational in April, but he ran 3:43.30 in the preliminaries to finish 20th and well off the pace.

Illinois senior Jonathan Davis had the fastest time Wednesday at 3:37.39, followed by Nathan Green of Washington (3:37.46), Sam Ellis of Princeton (3:37.60) and Thomas Vanoppen of Wake Forest (3:37.65), who all ran personal bests. Washington qualified three runners for the final, with sophomores Joe Waskom finishing eighth (3:39.45) and Luke Houser taking 10th (3:39.60).

Oregon sophomore Elliott Cook ran a time of 3:44.47 and finished 21st, with only the top 12 runners advancing.

Vollmer PRs in the high jump

Max Vollmer is on a roll in the decathlon.

The three-time Pac-12 champion set a PR in the high jump when he cleared 6-6 on his second attempt. It was a third-straight season-best for Vollmer on Wednesday.

He scored 785 to strengthen his hold on fourth place in the overall standings with 3,332 points.

Leo Neugebauer of Texas cleared 6-9 1/2 and was the top scorer in the third straight event as he continues to lead with 3,569 points. Georgia’s Kyle Garland is second with 3,561 and Ayden Owens-Delerme is third at 3,487.

Ducks narrowly miss out on 4x100 qualifying time

Oregon’s 4x100 relay team missed out on qualifying for Friday’s final by 0.016 seconds, finishing 11th with a time of 39.00.

Clemson nabbed the ninth and final qualifying spot by the narrowest of margins, running 38.984 to Virginia Tech’s 38.987. Houston had the fastest preliminary time at 38.66, followed by Tennessee (38.80), USC (38.83), Texas (38.91) and Florida (38.94).

SE Missouri's Blomquist wins hammer throw

Southeast Missouri senior Logan Blomquist uncorked a personal best of 240-8 on his sixth and final attempt to win the hammer throw Wednesday in the first final of the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

Blomquist’s throw was a 7-inch personal best and moved him to the top of the medal stand ahead of Penn State junior Tyler Merkley (238-6) and Minnesota sophomore Kostas Zaltos (237-10).

Decathlon is underway; Ducks' Vollmer in fourth

Max Vollmer made a big jump up the standings with a season-best throw in the shot put.

The Oregon decathlete threw 50 feet, 6¼ inches on his final attempt to score 814 points and move from 10th to fourth place overall with 2,547 points.

The throw was second-best among the 22 competitors.

Vollmer remains 154 points behind leader Leo Neugebauer (2,701) of Texas. Kyle Garland (2,693) of Georgia is in second place and Ayden Owens-Delerme (2,674) of Arkansas is third.

Vollmer records season-best in long jump

The Ducks' Max Vollmer is in 10th place after two events in the decathlon after recording a season-best 23 feet, 5½ inches in the long jump for 850 points.

The Oregon junior has 1,733 points and is 149 behind Georgia’s Kyle Garland, who leads with 1,882.

Arkansas junior Ayden Owens-Delerme (1,879), Texas sophomore Leo Neugebauer (1,850) and California’s Hakim McMorris (1,831) are all with striking distance as the event moves to the shot put.

Georgia senior Johannes Erm, who came into the meet ranked fourth in the NCAA this season, has pulled out of the competition after jogging his way through the finish line in the opening 100 meters.

Decathlon gets underway with the 100

Oregon’s Max Vollmer opened the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championship by running 10.90 seconds in the decathlon men’s 100 meter.

It was considerably slower than his season-best of 10.72 from the Pac-12 championships in May.

With 883 points, Vollmer is in ninth place heading into the long jump.

Arkansas’ Ayden Owens-Delerme ran 10.41 and Georgia’s Kyle Garland ran a PR 10.63 as they are the lead with 996 and 945 points, respectively.

Georgia senior Johannes Erm, who came into the meet ranked fourth in the NCAA this season, pulled up in his race and jogged through the finish line in 14.26 for 276 points.

Men's Day 1 starts at 12:30 p.m. with the decathlon with field events starting at 2 p.m. and track events starting at 4:30 p.m.

Ducks competing:'Quad-God' Micah Williams in hot pursuit of 100 title at NCAA Track & Field Championship

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This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Updates: NCAA Track & Field Championships schedule, events