Lobos earn record 15 NCAA Championship qualifying marks
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – A dozen New Mexico track and field athletes are headed to the NCAA Track & Field Championships, as the Lobos put forth a successful weekend in the 2023 NCAA West Preliminary Championship hosted by Sacramento State at Hornet Stadium.
A total of 12 individuals earned 15 separate national championship berths across eight different events over the weekend. It was the second time in program history that the Lobos had 15 separate national qualifiers, with the only other season being the 1965 campaign. “Every year our goal is to be better than we were the previous year,” said UNM head coach Joe Franklin. “We had a significant number qualify this year, and while we missed out on a couple we gained a few. This is another fantastic day for the Lobo track program.”
After winning the Mountain West title in the steeple chase two weeks ago, Awet Yohannes used a similarly dramatic finish on Friday night to clinch his spot in the national championships. Yohannes used a strong final kick to hold off Montana State’s Levi Taylor for third place in his heat, posting a time of 8:33.80 minutes. “Before the race in my head I was thinking top-five, and I was just hoping to stay there and stay with the first group,” Yohannes said on his race strategy. “I had a good conference meet, and this race was kind of the same way. I was kind of far from the first three people. I thought I could close hard so I gave all I had and it worked out.”
Yohannes came a fraction away from breaking a school record that has stood for nearly 50 years, missing Harrison Koroso’s mark of 8:33.44 minutes by just 0.36 seconds. Koroso’s record has stood since April 2, 1977. “The conference race helped me 100 percent,” Yohannes said after using a similarly-strong closing kick to win the conference title. “Then the next day I did the 5k and ran a really good time. That helped me realize I am in really good shape. Physically I was there, and mentally things worked out really good.”
Yohannes is the first Lobo men’s runner to qualify for nationals in the steeple chase since Graham Thomas advanced to the preliminary round in 2017. “I have been waiting for this to wear the turquoise jersey,” Yohannes said on earning a national berth. “I’ve been waiting for three years. This means so much to me and for my teammates as well. We have been training together the last three years.”
“Awet has come a long way since he’s been at New Mexico,” Franklin said. “His career will continue for at least one more race. He is the epitome of ‘good things happen to good people’. Not only is he a fantastic runner who just missed a record that has stood since the ‘70s, but he’s a better human being. He brings smiles to the faces of everybody on the team. He’s positive and thankful for what he has.”
New Mexico’s 4×400-meter relay team broke its own school record on Friday night, cruising into the national championships with a time of 3:04.13 minutes. The squad of Jevon O’Bryant, Jovahn Williamson, Victor Akhalu, and Brodie Young teamed up to finish in eighth place in the quarterfinals, breaking the previous mark of 3:04.98 minutes set by last season’s relay team. “They ran great,” Franklin said on the relay squad. “It was cold and windy, but they dealt with that very well. Victor ran his best ever relay split, and they all ran fantastic. Getting to Austin they have continued to get the record lower, and I’d expect to have it drop further.”
Abigail Goldstein punched her ticket to the national championships in the 1,500 meters in record-breaking fashion, running the fastest time in Lobo history at 4:10.32 minutes on Saturday evening. That was good enough for a sixth place finish, as she heads back to the national championships for the second year in-a-row.
Goldstein started her weekend by breaking her own school record on Thursday with a time of 4:11.50 minutes to take sixth in the first round. That was an improvement of more than a full second on her time of 4:12.98 minutes, which broke the school record on April 15 at the Bryan Clay Invitational. “That’s hard to do back-to-back,” Franklin said on Goldstein twice breaking her school record. “She was in maybe one of the greatest 1,500 races in NCAA history – I’m not sure an NCAA Championship has gone that fast and that deep.”
As expected based on their seed times, Amelia Mazza-Downie and Gracelyn Larkin both punched their tickets to the national championships in both the 10,000 meters and the 5,000 meters. Mazza-Downie led the way in the 10,000 meters on Thursday night with a time of 32:32.38 minutes, placing fifth among the field of 48 runners. Larkin stuck with her teammate the entire race, crossing the line in seventh place with a time of 32:37.67 minutes.
The duo then finished off the meet successfully on Saturday night, making it a double qualification for each of the seasoned veterans. Mazza-Downie cruised to a fourth-place finish in the 5,000 meters with a time of 15:36.02 minutes, which was the fastest of her outdoor career at New Mexico. Larkin followed in eighth place overall, posting a time of 15:41.35 minutes to secure her spot in the national championship race.
“They’re two of the best women in the country,” Franklin said on the long distance runners. “They have done this now for almost three years here and they continue to score and run at an elite level. The goal is to go to Austin and feel healthy, and have a chance to do something special there.”
After winning the Mountain West title in the steeple chase two weeks ago, Maisie Grice qualified for the national meet alongside Elise Thorner. The latter, who entered the week with the third-best time in the country, posted a mark of 9:42.87 minutes on Saturday to place fourth. Grice hung on through the finish in a competitive opening heat, and placed eighth overall with a time of 9:48.89 minutes. Grice earned her first national championship berth by virtue of a PR, as she improved by nearly five full seconds on her mark of 9:53.79 minutes run at the Bryan Clay Invitational.
“Maisie had another PB, and she believes in everything that is happening and in her training,” Franklin said on Grice’s recent bout of success. “For Elise it had been six weeks (since her last steeple), but she felt really well from a cardio standpoint. She was just a little rusty on the barriers, but that’s by design. Hopefully there will be two more races for both of them, and they both get better each race.”
The Lobo men’s sprinters hinted that they were on their way to a big performance in the relay two days earlier, when Williamson, O’Bryant, and Young each finished in the top-20 to qualify for Friday’s quarterfinal round. Williamson went on to earn a berth in the national championships, finishing in 10th place with a time of 45.74 seconds. Young capped his individual season with a stellar mark of 45.87 seconds on Friday, missing a national qualifying mark by just 0.11 seconds.
“Jovahn is a flat-out competitor, and he shows up when it counts most,” Franklin said on the senior’s second straight trip to the national championships. “Doing it once is easier than the second time. You feel the pressure, but he handled that well and ran exceptionally well.”
Jake Burkey and Lokesh Sathyanathan got the week started the right way, each earning berths into the national championships in the long jump on Wednesday evening. Burkey placed eighth among the field of 48 competitors, posting a jump of 7.67 meters (25’ 2”) in his second competition of the 2023 outdoor season. Sathyanathan was close behind in 11th place, notching a leap of 7.65 meters (25’ 1.25”) to qualify for nationals. That duo was coming off a top-two finish at the Mountain West Championships, with Sathyanathan claiming his first collegiate crown and Burkey finishing as the runner up.
“The conditions for Jake and Loki were challenging, and some of the most elite long jumpers in the U.S. did not advance,” Franklin said. “Those two competed well. Now they both have a chance to go in and find a way to score at the national championships.”
Stefanie Parsons wrapped up her decorated collegiate career with a personal best in the 1,500 meters on Saturday evening, finishing in 14th place with a time of 4:13.46 minutes. Parsons was just 0.52 seconds off of a national championship berth, and her PR time came after her first-round time of 4:15.78 minutes on Thursday.
Before helping the Lobo relay team to the national championships, Akhalu wrapped up his individual season by placing 31st in the 100 meters with a time of 10.47 seconds on Wednesday evening. That was just 0.19 seconds off his school-record tying mark of 10.28 seconds, which he ran at the Mountain West Championships to earn a second-place finish.
Tianna Holmes wrapped up her collegiate career on Thursday night, competing in both the 200 meters and 400 meters. Holmes finished 25th in the 400 meters with a time of 52.99 seconds, before checking in at 26th in the 200 meters with a time of 23.46 seconds.
Fellow senior Aidan Quinn also completed his collegiate career at the preliminary meet, competing in his signature triple jump for the final time. Quinn posted a top mark of 15.22 meters (49’ 11.25”) to finish in 26th place on Friday night.
Lobo newcomers Annamaria Leszczynska and Logan Neely finished up their standout debut seasons on Thursday evening in the 400 meter hurdles. Leszczynska placed 37th with a time of 1:00.27 minutes, and Neely followed in 42nd with a time of 1:00.84 minutes.
Jonathan Carmin wrapped up his strong freshman season with the Lobos competing in both the 1,500 meters and the 5,000 meters. On Wednesday, Carmin finished in 28th place in the 1,500 meters with a time of 3:46.70 minutes. He followed with a time of 14:46.31 minutes in the 5,000 meters on Friday, taking 47th place. Kevin Mulcaire also competed in the 5,000 meters, finishing in 43rd on Friday with a time of 14:19.05 minutes.
Ethan Brouw wrapped up his second year as a Lobo running the 800-meters, where he posted a time of 1:54.21 minutes on Wednesday to take 45th place.
NEXT UP: New Mexico’s national championship qualifiers will compete at Mike A. Myers Stadium at the University of Texas, with the meet running June 7-10 in Austin.