After a rain delay in the morning, the NCAA East Preliminaries kicked off in the afternoon at the UK Outdoor Track and Field Complex and Ventavius Sears exceled in the long jump, placing seventh out of 48 competitors.
Sears, who will compete in the triple jump on Saturday, posted a 7.58m (24’10.5”) mark. The top 12 out of each event make it to the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore., marking Sears’ fourth and final trip to the Beaver State.
Desmond Mobley also competed in the long jump, notching a 7.08m (23’2.75”) mark to finish in 32nd. Mobley will participate in the high jump on Saturday.
In the 400m hurdles, Maor Seged crossed the finish line in 52.86 seconds, finishing in 26th place. Eli Minor placed 29th in the 100-meter dash with a time of 10.44. The pair will run on the relay squads on Saturday.
Two Hilltoppers qualified for quarterfinals in the short sprints – Julius Morris (100m) and Emmanuel Dasor (400m). Morris clocked a 10.28 to place 11th and Dasor posted a 47.49 time to finish in 22nd place.
Both will be at it again tomorrow in the quarterfinals (24 total participants), which is the final round where the top 12 make it to Eugene.
On the women’s side, Khadijah Valentine ran a 12.68 to place 46th in the 100-meter dash and Morgan McIntyre in the pole vault could not clear the first height of 3.80m (12’5.5”). Valentine will participate in the 200-meter dash tomorrow evening.
WKU will be back in action tomorrow for Day 2 starting at 1 p.m. CT. For more information on the NCAA East Preliminaries, click here to go to the home page.
How to follow WKU Track & Field: For complete information on WKU Track & Field, follow the team on Twitter at @WKUTrackField.
-@WKUSports-
Lance Dozier
WKU Athletic Communications Assistant