FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Matthew Endrödy (1,500m) and Habtom Samuel (5,000m) both secured qualifications for NCAA Outdoor Championships to wrap up the final day of men’s competition at NCAA West Region Preliminaries Friday at John McDonnell Field.
With his first-place finish in the 5,000m Semifinal, Samuel will return to contest both the 5K and 10K at NCAA Outdoor Championships for a third consecutive season after finishing as national runner-up in both in 2025. He remains unbeaten by collegiate competition across the 2025-26 academic year – winning the XC and Indoor 5K titles and becoming the first collegian to break 13 minutes in the 5K outdoors in the process – and will enter Eugene as a heavy favorite in both distances.
After finishing sixth in the Mile at Indoor Championships in his first appearance in March, Endrödy is going to Outdoor Championships for the first time in his career in the 1,500m after finishing fifth in his heat to snag one of 10 automatic qualifying spots in Friday’s Quarterfinal. He’s the first man from New Mexico to make it all the way to the Outdoor 1,500m Semifinals since Josh Kerr and Ian Crowe-Wright in 2018.
Tomorrow’s final day of competition gets underway for New Mexico with Ajia Hughes up first in the High Jump First Round at 1 p.m. MT. Saturday’s action will be streamed via ESPN+, with live results available via GoLobos.com/TrackResults. Follow @UNMLoboXCTF for meet day updates, behind-the-scenes content and comprehensive coverage of New Mexico Track & Field.
Men’s 1,500m - Quarterfinal
16. Matthew Endrödy - 3:45.44 (Q)
Endrödy took the lead down the stretch and held on late to finish fifth in the opening heat and secure his qualification for his second NCAA Championships in a row after finishing sixth in the Mile at NCAA Indoors in March. He finished in 3:45.44 in a strategic heat that was won by Arkansas’ Brian Masai in 3:44.42 – each of the top 11 finishers in a speedier second heat ran faster.
Matthew Endrödy is 𝗘𝗨𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗘 𝗕𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗗‼️
— New Mexico XC/T&F (@UNMLoboXCTF) May 29, 2026
He crosses fifth in the first heat to secure his first appearance at NCAA Outdoor Championships. pic.twitter.com/iOCI1Wd7WV
The South African sophomore will race next in Eugene on June 10 at 6:20 p.m. MT in the national semifinal – the Top 12 from those heats advance to the national final on June 12.
Men’s 5,000m - Semifinal
1. Habtom Samuel - 13:38.12 (Q)
14. Vincent Chirchir - 13:49.17
16. Collins Kiprotich - 13:52.90
23. Iker Sanchez Lopez - 14:04.62
41. Evans Kiplagat - 14:32.59
Habtom Samuel led for most of the race and made his move with two laps to go to run away with the first heat, crossing in 13:38.12 after closing the final 400 meters in 58.96 seconds – the only sub-minute 400m split of any athlete in the entire heat.
Habtom makes his move over the final two laps to run away with the first heat of the Men’s West Region 5K (13:38.12).
— New Mexico XC/T&F (@UNMLoboXCTF) May 30, 2026
He advances to Eugene in both the 5K and 10K with the top times in both Semifinals 📈 pic.twitter.com/5BDbq9VzPW
Vincent Chirchir (13:49.17) finished sixth in the first heat but was bumped from qualifying due to a faster second heat in which Collins Kiprotich (13:52.90) finished ninth and Evans Kiplagat (14:32.59) finished 22nd.
Iker Sanchez Lopez (14:04.62) crossed ninth in the first heat to conclude his Lobo career as a two-time Regional Qualifier and Top-10 all-time performer in the 5,000m and 1,500m.
Samuel will compete next at Hayward Field in the 10,000m Final on Wednesday, June 10 and return for the 5,000m Final on Friday.