Mathew Kosgei Dominates Steeplechase on Day 3 at West Regional Prelims
COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Mathew Kosgei set a new facility record in the 3K Steeplechase to advance to NCAA Outdoor Finals and Ishmael Kipkurui and Habtom Samuel both punched their tickets in their second event of the weekend to highlight the final day of competition for the New Mexico men Friday at NCAA West Region Preliminaries, with eight other Lobo athletes competing for the final time this season.
Triple Jump (First Round)
42. Cameron Miller – 14.65m (48’-¾”)
Miller jumped 14.65m on his third and final attempt in the first flight of the men’s triple jump after notching a 14.49m mark on his first jump and fouling on his second to wrap up his freshman season as the No. 42 athlete in the West Region. He entered this week’s competition ranked 49th in the region.
3,000 Steeplechase (Quarterfinal)
1. Mathew Kosgei – 8:25.41
• Meet Record + Facility Record
• QUALIFIED for NCAA Outdoor Championships
Kosgei pulled away from the rest of his heat early and left no doubt as he set a new facility record with an 8:25.41 finish, 3.45 seconds faster than the next-best finisher overall and 14.19 seconds faster than the next athlete to cross the finish line in his heat. He’ll enter NCAA Outdoor Championships in two weeks with the second-fastest time in the nation (8:22.13) in the event.
100 Meters (Quarterfinal)
17. Cam Watts – 10.18
Cam Watt’s brief but epic collegiate debut season on the track oval ended with him as the 17th-fastest man in the West Region Quarterfinals, crossing in 10.18 to finish fifth in the third heat.
In the last four months, Watts won two Mountain West individual titles in the indoor 60m and outdoor 100m while breaking the UNM record in the 100m and running the second-fastest time in UNM history in the 60m. The football player-turned-sprinter’s 10.05 raw performance at the Don Kirby Twilight meet in April is fast enough to secure an opportunity to compete at USATF Outdoor Championships (July 31 – August 3).
400 Meters (Quarterfinal)
13. Brodie Young – 45.94
Young missed out on a trip to NCAA Outdoor Championships by just a hundredth of a second after finishing fifth in the third heat of the Men’s 400m quarterfinals, posting the 13th-fastest time of quarterfinals behind Texas A&M’s Cutler Zamzow 45.93. His 45.94 finish is his seventh time this year running below 46 seconds across the indoor and outdoor season, a quarter of a second faster than his opening time from the first round on Wednesday (46.19).
400 Hurdles (Quarterfinal)
15. Levente Soos – 50.95
Levente Soos finished sixth in the first heat of Men’s 400 hurdles quarterfinals with a 50.95 performance to conclude his season as the third man out from advancing. This weekend, Soos ran below 51 seconds in both of his races after doing so only once in his career prior – his 50.53 lifetime best set at the Arizona Desert Heat Classic on May 3 stands as the third-best in UNM history.
5,000 Meters (Semifinal)
5. Ishmael Kipkurui – 13:28.25
• QUALIFIED for NCAA Outdoor Championships
7. Habtom Samuel – 13:32.41
• QUALIFIED for NCAA Outdoor Championships
15. Collins Kiprotich – 13:41.38
17. Vincent Chirchir – 13:42.80
25. Evans Kiplagat – 13:50.94
31. Iker Sanchez – 14:01.27
Ishmael Kipkurui finished fifth in the first heat and Habtom Samuel finished second in the second heat as both secured their second NCAA Outdoor Finals qualifications of the week – they’ll both contest both the 10,000m and 5,000m in Eugene. Samuel has now qualified for NCAA National finals in two different events four times across the first two indoor and outdoor seasons of his collegiate career.
Behind them, Collins Kiprotich (13:41.38) and Vincent Chirchir (13:42.80) narrowly missed out on a trip to Eugene as they ran the 15th- and 17th-fastest times of the night ahead of Evans Kiplagat (25th, 13:50.94) and Iker Sanchez (31st, 14:01.27).
