by EMPORIA, Kan. – Oklahoma City University men’s 4×800-meter relay team nabbed a B standard qualifying bid with its victory on Saturday in the Emporia State Relays at the Witten Track and Welch Stadium.
The Emporia State Relays hosted by Emporia State University contained 27 schools and over 1,100 competitors.
The Stars’ 4×800-meter relay team consists of Ryan Nielsen, Hunter Swink, Michael Vercoe-Curtis and Mackenzie Wahpepah-Harris (Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma). OCU finished with a time of seven minutes and 48.01 seconds, 15.88 seconds ahead of second-place Midland (Neb.). Oklahoma City edged the B standard qualifying time by 0.99 seconds. The A standard qualifying time is 7:45.00.
Isaac Roldan and Jonathan Falcon finished in fifth-place and eighth place in the 5,000 meters, respectively. Roldan, a freshman from Oklahoma City, clocked a 15:35.36, while Falcon, a freshman from Katy, Texas, finished with a time of 15:44.56. The qualifying time cutoff for nationals in the 5,000-meter race is 14:59.00.
Kyle Copp, a freshman from Burleson, Texas, competed in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and finished in 16th-place with a time of 10:31.04.
In the 800-meter race, Joe Pierce led the Stars with a 33rd-place finish at 2:01.09.Andrew Robling followed in 38th-place with a time of 2:02.49, while Jacob Keen placed 46th at 2:04.80. Oaklin Davis finished with a time of 2:07.91 and Lucas Harrington crossed at 2:08.62. Sam Henry clocked a 2:15.14. The B standard qualifying time is 1:53.50.
Davis, a freshman from Aledo, Texas, paced the Stars in the 1,500 meters with a time of 4:18.28, for 41st-place. Harrington, a freshman from Columbia, Mo., followed in 46th-place at 4:21.70, while Henry and Erick Meza finished with times of 4:26.89 and 4:28.87, respectively. The B standard qualifying time in the 1,500 meters is 3:56.50.
The 2016 NAIA Outdoor Track and Field National Championships are scheduled for May 26-28 at the Mickey Miller Blackwell Stadium in Gulf Shores, Ala.
OCU runs next in the Butler Grizzly Invitational on April 9 in El Dorado, Kan.
Results
2016 NAIA Outdoor Track & Field National Championship qualifiers
4×800-meter Relay
Ryan Nielsen, Hunter Swink, Michael Vercoe-Curtis, Mackenzie Wahpepah-Harris – B
