University of Minnesota Athletics
McKeag Advances to NCAA Championships
5/24/2018 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track & Field
Results
SACRAMENTO, Calif – The first Golden Gopher has punched his ticket to the 2018 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships as Kieran McKeag moved on in the hammer throw on Thursday at the 2018 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field West Preliminary, held at Sacramento State’s Hornet Stadium.
McKeag’s first throw of the day proved to be his best with a personal record of 63.97 meters (209-10 ft.). The performance was good enough for 10th among competitors at the prelims with the top-12 throwers advancing to the national championships. McKeag remains eighth all-time at Minnesota in the hammer throw.
In addition to McKeag’s performance, the Maroon & Gold also pushed a trio of runners through to quarterfinal races later in the weekend. Both of Minnesota’s runners in the 400 meters advanced on Thursday with Jackson Wellenstein running 46.75 and Jonathan Webb clocking a 46.94. Wellenstein’s performance ranked 14th among qualifiers for Friday’s quarterfinals while Webb ranked 16th. Both men will also run in Minnesota’s 4x400 meter relay on Saturday at Hornet Stadium.
Shane Streich also moved on to the 1,500-meter quarterfinals on Saturday after running 3:46.94 in the opening round on Thursday. Streich’s time ranked 14th among qualifiers.
Additionally, a number of Gophers closed out their seasons on the opening day of competition at the NCAA West Prelims. Mason Roomes finished 23rd in the long jump at 7.37 meters (24-02.25 ft.) while Derek Wiebke finished 43rd in the 1,500 meters at 4:03.19. Dawson LaRance added a 34th-place showing in the 800 meters at 1:51.96 while Chris Trotter was 44th at 1:54.08. Jon Nerdal finished 35th in the hammer throw at 59.15 meters (194-00 ft.).
The Gophers continue to compete at the 2018 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field West Preliminary on Friday with the 400 meter quarterfinals (Wellenstein, Webb) and the 3,000 meter steeplechase quarterfinals (Obsa Ali, Alec Basten).
