Salcido, Prouse Punch NCAA Tickets at West Prelims
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — With one athlete already moving on to the national championships, the Lobos decided to double down.
University of New Mexico track & field athletes Carlos Salcido and Charlotte Prouse advanced to the NCAA Championships Friday night as they both captured bids during the second day of action at the 2018 NCAA West Preliminary Round.
Salcido punched his ticket in the 400-meter run and Prouse qualified in the 3000-meter steeplechase as both posted strong performances on the second day of the three-day meet at Hornet Stadium in Sacramento.
They join Alice Wright, who advanced to her fourth-straight NCAA Championship in the 10,000 on Thursday night.
Five more Lobos, including NCAA champs Josh Kerr and Ednah Kurgat, will get a chance to advance Saturday on the final day of the West Prelims, where the top 48 athletes and top 24 relay teams in the NCAA West Region aim for a top-12 finish in their events and a spot at June’s NCAA Championships in Eugene, Oregon.
But the stories of Friday’s competition were Salcido and Prouse, who both shined against the best of the west.
Salcido advanced to his first NCAA Outdoor Championships via a strong and gutsy showing in the quarterfinals of the 400, holding his own against a talented field that included USC’s Michael Norman, the 2018 world leader in the indoor 400.
Salcido crossed the line in 46.04 seconds, which was good for third place in his heat and an automatic bid to Eugene. The top three finishers in each of the three quarterfinals and the next three fastest times advanced to the NCAA finals.
He becomes the first Lobo since Jarrin Solomon in 2009 to qualify to the NCAA Championships in the 400.
For Prouse, she simply dominated her race — the final of the day — as she took over her heat after a lap and never turned back en route to a heat-winning and championship-qualifying time of 9:55.14.
After opening the race near the front of the 16-athlete field, Prouse moved to the front for a lead she would not relinquish over the final six laps. She topped Utah State runner-up Cierra Simmons, who defeated Prouse in a tightly contested Mountain West Championship race.
Prouse advances to her second NCAA Championships in the event, with her first appearance coming with Washington in 2016. That year was also the last UNM qualified a woman in the steeplechase, with Courtney Frerichs setting the NCAA record at that championship.
Elsewhere, three other New Mexico athletes competed Friday, but did not advance.
In the quarterfinals of the men’s 800, Michael Wilson posted a valiant charge over the final 300 meters, but placed 15th overall with a time of 1:49.19.
The 3000 steeplechase saw two other Lobos compete, with Jonny Glen finishing 38th in the men’s race (time of 9:06.73) and Alondra Negrón Texidor finishing 23rd in the women’s race (10:15.77).
Negrón Texidor’s time was a new personal record and moves her to fourth all-time in program history.
New Mexico will have four athletes in action on Saturday, starting with Brent Dionisio in the men’s high jump at 5 p.m. MT. Kerr and Ian Crowe-Wright compete in the quarterfinal round of the men’s 1500 at 7:30 p.m. MT followed by Kurgat and Weini Kelati in the semifinals of the women’s 5000 at 9:45 p.m. MT.
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