The Indiana women’s track and field team competed in the NCAA Preliminary Round in the East Regional, which was hosted by the Hoosiers in Bloomington.
Four athletes delivered qualifying performances in their events and will advance to the NCAA Championships from June 8-11 in Eugene, Oregon.
On Thursday, freshman Jayden Ulrich and seniors Paola Fernandez-Sola, Hannah Stoffel and Maddy Pollard competed in and qualified for the next round of their respective events.
Fernandez-Sola grabbed the bronze medal in long jump with a distance of 6.33 meters. Stoffel recorded a time of 4:15.77, her personal best and fifth-best in school history, in the 1500 meter race to reach Saturday’s quarterfinals.
Ulrich and Pollard competed in shot put, placing sixth and ninth respectively. Ulrich notched a throw of 17.05 meters, and Pollard recorded 16.87 meters.
Sophomore Morgan Snow, graduate student Kelly Mindak, freshman Makayla Hunter and senior Anna Watson also competed on Thursday but did not qualify for the championships.
Saturday’s competitors included Stoffel, Ulrich, Pollard, sophomore Mahogany Jenkins and senior Sarah Schmitt across four different events. Ulrich’s performance in the discus competition and Jenkins’ in high jump earned them both spots in the championships.
Ulrich threw for 52.73 meters, earning her the final qualifying spot and solidifying her appearance in two different events in Eugene. Jenkins advanced after winning a jump off with North Carolina A&T University junior Kenady Wilson. Jenkins recorded a jump of 1.81 meters.
Fernandez-Sola, Pollard, Ulrich and Jenkins have over a week off before the NCAA Championships begin. The event will run from June 8-11 on the University of Oregon campus.
