JONESBORO, Ark. (5/21/24) – Wednesday marks the start of the 2024 NCAA West Preliminary Rounds, featuring seven Arkansas State track and field athletes, at the John McDonnell Field in Fayetteville, Ark.

EVENT COVERAGE
All four days of competition will be streamed live on ESPN Plus in addition to live results. Links to follow the action can be found on AStateRedWolves.com.

THE FORMAT
Athletes who rank among the top 48 in their respective events earn bids into the prelims, with others added due to scratches among the initial top 48. The top 12 individuals in each event at both the East and West Prelims advance to the NCAA Outdoor Championships, held June 5-8 in Eugene, Ore.

All track events, except for the 5000 meters, 10,000 meters and 3000-meter steeplechase, feature a first round and quarterfinal, with the top 24 finishers from the first round advancing to a quarterfinal round. From there, those in the top 12 advance to Eugene.

In throwing and horizontal jumps events, competitors will have three attempts to achieve their best mark, with the final 12 moving on to the national meet. In vertical jumps, the top 12 athletes advance to the national championships.

THE SCHEDULE
Wednesday, May 22
6 p.m.: M 110-meter Hurdles First Round – Colby Eddowes (Heat 5 of 6)
7 p.m.: M Shot Put – Willem Coertzen (Flight 3 of 4)
7:50 p.m.: M 800 meters First Round – Hannes Fahl (Heat 5 of 6)
8:20 p.m.: M 400-meter Hurdles First Round – Josh Jones (Heat 2 of 6)

Thursday, May 23
7 p.m.: W Shot Put – Michelle Ogbemudia (Flight 2 of 4), Selase Sampram (Flight 3)

Friday, May 24
1 p.m.: M Discus Throw – Menachem Chen (Flight 2 of 3)
6:15 p.m.: M 110-meter Hurdles Quarterfinals – Colby Eddowes (if advance)
7:05 p.m.: M 800 meters Quarterfinals – Hannes Fahl (if advance)
7:25 p.m.: M 400-meter Hurdles Quarterfinals – Josh Jones (if advance)

HOW THEY GOT HERE
Menachem Chen – Men’s Discus Throw
Freshman Menachem Chen wasted little time in making his mark on the record books this outdoor season. The Rishon LeZion, Israel, native shattered the school and facility records in the men’s discus at the inaugural Alumni Classic on April 20, throwing 57.59m (188-11) on his very first attempt of the day. His mark enters the prelims ranked 25^th in the West Region, and he most recently placed fourth in the event at the Sun Belt Conference Championships.

Willem Coertzen – Men’s Shot Put
Junior Willem Coertzen is coming off the best performance of his collegiate outdoor career, hurling a career-best 18.52m (60-9.25) to win gold at the Sun Belt Conference championships. His title was the first by an A-State men’s thrower in the event since 2015. Coertzen’s throw currently ranks 19^th in the West and third in program history. The South African is making his second straight appearance at prelims after making the field of 48 last year as a sophomore.

Hannes Fahl – Men’s 800 meters
Hannes Fahl is coming off an 18-point performance at the Sun Belt Conference Championships, which included an 800-meter gold medal on the final day. Fahl boasts a qualifying time of 1:49.04, set at the Drake Relays. The sophomore also took silver in the 1500 meters this outdoor season after taking gold in the indoor mile.

Colby Eddowes – Men’s 110-meter Hurdles
Two-time Sun Belt Conference decathlon champion Colby Eddowes is making his second straight appearance at the West Prelims, but his first on the straightaway after competing in the long jump last season. The indoor First Team All-American broke his own conference championship record in the decathlon earlier this month and took bronze in the high jump. In the 110-meter hurdles, his event for the week, he boasts a season-best wind-legal time of 13.75 set at the Bulldog Relays in March, a time which is 27^th in the West.

Josh Jones – Men’s 400-meter Hurdles
Freshman Josh Jones is looking to continue his strong rookie campaign this week in Fayetteville, running the 400-meter hurdles – an event in which he finished fourth at the Sun Belt Championships. In Monroe, Jones ran a season-best time of 51.82 in the finals after placing sixth in the 110-meter hurdles earlier in the day. His qualifying mark entering the prelims is 43^rd overall in the region.

Michelle Ogbemudia – Women’s Shot Put
Newcomer Michelle Ogbemudia is another returnee to the West Prelims after having competed in the women’s shot put last season at Stephen F. Austin. Ogbemudia, the 2024 SBC Women’s Indoor Newcomer of the Year, qualified for the regional round with a career-best throw of 16.26m (53-4.25) set at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays in Austin back in March. Her mark ranks 30^th in the West entering the preliminary rounds.

Selase Sampram – Women’s Shot Put
Selase Sampram is back in the first round of the women’s shot put after having competed in the event last season. The junior placed third in the discus and fourth in the shot put at the Sun Belt Championships, but her top mark in the shot put came in late March at the 96^th Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays. Sampram placed sixth in that event, throwing a personal-best 16.77m (55-0.25) to rank 17^th in the West entering the prelims.

SOCIAL MEDIA

For the latest on the A-State track and field and cross country programs, follow @AStateTrack on Twitter and @astatetfxc on Instagram, while also liking the team’s Facebook page at Facebook.com/AStateTrackAndField.