FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Rebekah Erikson cleared 4.30-meters/14-1.25 in the pole vault and Jenna Hutchins ran 34:10.30 in the 10,000m to book their tickets to nationals as Sami Oblad broke the program's 25-year-old 400m record, clocking 52.41 Thursday afternoon at John McDonnell Field.
Erikson and Hutchins punch tickets to nationals as Oblad breaks 25-year-old program record
Rebekah Erikson cleared 4.30-meters/14-1.25 in the pole vault and Jenna Hutchins ran 34:10.30 in the 10,000m to book their tickets to nationals as Sami Oblad broke the program's 25-year-old 400m record, clocking 52.41 Thursday afternoon at John McDonnell Field.
The top 12 placing athletes/relays in each event at both the West and East Preliminary Rounds comprise the field of 24 that will compete at the NCAA Championships June 5-8 in Eugene, Oregon.
Erikson tied for first in the pole vault with first attempt makes at every bar in the competition to punch her first-ever ticket to a NCAA national meet. A junior from Spokane, Washington, Erikson holds the program's all-time record in the event as she cleared 4.31m/14-1.75 at the 2024 Big 12 Championships. She will compete for a national title June 6 in Eugene, Oregon.
Hutchins placed fourth overall in the 10,000m field of 48 earning her trip to the NCAA championsips. A sophomore from Johnson City, Tennessee, Hutchins is ranked No. 3 all-time at BYU with her personal best of 32:52.01 run at the 2024 Bryan Clay Invitational. She will compete at Hayward Field for the first time in her collegiate career June 6.
Oblad qualified for the quarterfinal round of the 400m set for Saturday evening with her 52.51 school record-breaking performance, shattering the previous school record by nearly half of a second. She now owns both the indoor and outdoor school record in the event.
Jaslyn Gardner clocked an all-conditions career best in the 100m, sprinting to 11.03 to win her heat and advance to the quarterfinals on Saturday. Gardner owns the Cougars' school record in the event at 11.22; however, the wind reading was 3.0 m/s and was over the legal limit to count for the BYU record books. She will compete again Saturday for a lane at the championships in Eugene.
Riley Chamberlain earned an automatic qualifier spot to the quarterfinals as she ran to 4:14.19 in the 1500m. The sophomore from Clovis, California has an all-time personal best in the event at 4:11.48, good for No. 5 all-time at BYU. She will run the 1500m Saturday as she looks to advance to the championships in June.
Krystie Solomon ran 2:04.91 in the 800m to qualify on time for Saturday's quarterfinal. The junior from Hamilton, New Zealand ran an all-time personal best of 2:04.68 in the event two weeks ago to place eighth at the 2024 Big 12 Championships.
Annalise Hart placed third in her heat of the 400m hurdles, running 57.59 to earn an automatic qualifying spot for Saturday's quarterfinal. Hart currently sits at No. 2 all-time at BYU in the event with a personal best of 57.07; just .18 off of the all-time program record.
Maren Garnett tied for 13th in the pole vault just missing out on the national-qualifying 12 as she cleared 4.20m/13-9.25, good for No. 6 all-time in the program's record books.
Quotes
"I was really excited about this meet. My clearance today marks three meets in a row over 14 feet, so I’m liking the consistency over these higher bars as I head into nationals."
BYU pole vault coach Rick McWhorter
"Rebekah has shown incredible mental toughness these last few weeks. She has always been talented but she finally put it all together this week. She will do well at nationals."
BYU sprints coach Kyle Grossarth
"The women had a fantastic day. Having all three advance to the quarterfinals was a lot of fun. They came in prepared and executed their race plans very well. I’m looking forward to more on Saturday."
"I remember I did the 5000m at this meet last year and I was sick a couple of weeks before but still gave it my best shot. In the last lap I wasn't able to finish strong and that was devastating for me. I wanted to come back stronger this year and really do well for that version of myself a year ago. I am super excited to represent BYU at nationals."
BYU women's distance coach Diljeet Taylor
"It was a really tender moment to see Jenna finish like that and be competitive. She took a fall early on and that was a little scary, but she rallied and was so mentally tough like our entire women's team. They are all just building off of each other's energy. Lots of good things are happening and I am excited for finals."
The BYU men's track and field team will begin competition Friday afternoon with the start of the men's discus at 12 p.m. MDT. The women will resume competition Saturday with the women's set to start at 12 p.m. Find all event information on the Meet Central page.