Seven Mustangs Qualify For NCAA Track and Field West Prelims

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From SMUMustangs.com:

Seven Mustangs Qualify For NCAA West Prelims

DALLAS (SMU) - Seven Mustangs earned bids to the NCAA West Preliminaries announced by the NCAA on Thursday. The Prelims are set for May 23-25 from Sacramento, California.

The Mustangs are coming off a strong American Athletic Conference Outdoor Championships performance. The squad finished in third, jumping seven spots on the final day and bringing home nine total medals.

Junior Chelsea Francis qualified in a pair of events, the 100 and 200 meters. Francis won two golds at the American Athletic Conference Outdoor Championships and was named Most Outstanding Track Performer. She holds the NCAA West's 6th-best 100 mark and 13th-fastest 200 this season.

A pair of Mustangs are set to compete in the 10,000 meters out west. Junior Hannah Miller, the silver medalist in the 10,000 meter at the AAC, qualified with the 12th-fastest time in the West. Senior Svenja Ojstersek qualified as well. Ojstersek posted a fourth-place finish at the AACs along with a bronze medal in the 5,000.

Freshman Chika Iwuamadi will participate in the 400 meters in Sacramento after taking silver at the AACs and breaking the school record. Senior Nicole Iloanya captured bronze at conference in the triple jump and earned a spot in the Prelims tying her best distance of the year, 12.96 meters.

Madison Pyle and Ashton Woods qualified in the 400 hurdles. Pyle ran the first sub-minute SMU time in the event on her way to silver at the AACs. Woods has the program's fourth-fastest 400 hurdles mark with a top time of 1:00.35.

The top-12 finishers from each event in Sacramento will earn bids to the NCAA Outdoor Championships held in Austin June 5-8.