Cougars head to NCAA Championships in Eugene
Four Cougar athletes travel to Eugene, Oregon for the NCAA Track and Field Championships, which begin Wednesday.
COURTESY PHOTO/WSU ATHLETICS
PULLMAN — The Washington State Track and Field programs will send four members to the 2024 NCAA Track and Field Championships from June 5-8 in Eugene, Ore. Competing for the Cougars will be decathlete Lee Walburn, shot putter Nana Gyedu and 100m hurdlers Maribel Caicedo and Micaela De Mello.
The championships begin Wednesday, June 5, with the senior Walburn competing in the men's decathlon. Walburn posted the nation's 14th-best mark on the season with 7,694 points at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays in late March, and begins his championship at 12:30 p.m. PT in the 100 meters. His other events that day include the long jump, shot put, high jump and 400 meters. Thursday will see Walburn compete in the 110m hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin and 1500 meters.
Thursday is also the day of events for the WSU women. Graduate student Caicedo, a graduate student, and De Mello, a redshirt junior, compete in the 100m hurdles at 6:32 p.m. Caicedo, who enters the championships with the nation's leading time of 12.38 seconds set at the NCAA First Round two weeks ago in Fayetteville, Ark., will run out of Lane 5 in the first heat. De Mello, who also set her personal best in Fayetteville in a time of 12.82, will be in Lane 7 of the second heat. The 100m hurdles consist of three heats with the top two finishers from each heat, plus the next best three times will advance to Saturday's final.
Also competing Thursday evening at 7:40 p.m. will be Nana Gyedu in the women's shot put. In Fayetteville two weeks ago, Gyedu, the junior from London, England, extended her own school record with a throw of 17.23m.
Broadcast coverage of all events can be seen on ESPN+ throughout the championships. ESPN2 will also have coverage each of the first three days while final-day coverage Saturday will be seen on ESPN.
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