National Championship Preview: 4 Lobos set to run on hometown track
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The final race of the 2023 indoor track and field season kicks off on Friday, and four New Mexico stars are entered in the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships at the Albuquerque Convention Center.
Amelia Mazza-Downie and Gracelyn Larkin will race in the 5,000-meters, Ethan Brouw will take to the track in the 800-meters, and Jake Burkey is set to compete in the long jump on Friday night.
2023 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships – Lobo Schedule
Friday, March 10
5:05 p.m. – Women’s 5,000-Meters (Mazza-Downie, Larkin
7 p.m. – Men’s Long Jump (Burkey)
7:45 p.m. – Men’s 800-Meters (Brouw)
Saturday, March 11
7:30 p.m. – Men’s 800-Meters
Live Coverage: The NCAA Championships will be streamed live on ESPN throughout the weekend. Live results for the event will be available online here.
Mazza-Downie enters the 5,000-meter race with the fourth-fastest time in the NCAA this season, as she cruised to a time of 15:18.54 minutes to win the University of Washington Husky Classic on Feb. 10 in Seattle. The five-time All-American earned one of those accolades at last year’s NCAA Indoor Championships, where she placed seventh in the event with a time of 15:37.87 minutes.
Running alongside Mazza-Downie will be Larkin, who qualified by virtue of the 13th-fastest time in the NCAA this year. Larkin’s season best came on Dec. 3, 2022, when she posted a time of 15:37.47 minutes at the Boston-hosted Sharon Colyear Danville Season Opener. Larkin is also a five-time All-American, including an eighth-place finish in the 5,000-meters at last year’s championship with a time of 15:44.31 minutes.
Brouw broke the school record in the 800-meters on Feb. 11, running a personal-best time of 1:47.21 minutes to place third at the UW Husky Classic in Seattle. Brouw’s standout time was the 17th-best in the NCAA this year, and he will be competing at the national championship meet for the first time in his UNM career. If Brouw finishes in the top-eight in the preliminary round on Friday, he’ll earn a spot in the 800-meter finals which are set for Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
A Lobo newcomer this year, Burkey continuously established his personal best in the long jump on his way to the 2023 Mountain West Indoor Championships title in the event. Burkey’s best mark of the season was his championship-winning leap of 7.87 meters (25’ 10”) which he achieved on Feb. 23 at the Mountain West Championships in Albuquerque. He enters Friday’s meet with the 15th-best jump in the NCAA this year.