Wednesday, May 24
Sacramento, CA
11:00 am MT
Air Force Academy
at
NCAA West Preliminary
Falcons Head to California for NCAA West Preliminary
5/23/2023 11:46:00 AM | Track and Field
Eighteen members of the Air Force track and field team will travel to Sacramento, Calif., this week for the West Preliminary of the 2023 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The four-day event, which will be held at Hornet Stadium on the Sacramento State campus, will begin on Wednesday, May 24, and continue through Saturday, May 27.
MEET INFORMATION
The West Preliminary serves as the opening round of the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The men will compete on Wednesday and Friday, while the women will compete on Thursday and Saturday (a complete breakdown of Air Force events can be found on Page 2 of this release). Single day tickets are $15, while all-session passes are $40, and spectators must adhere to Sacramento State's Clear Bag Policy. Live results will be available for all four days of competition, courtesy of Flash Results and the NCAA, while ESPN+ will broadcast the evening sessions. In-meet updates regarding Air Force can be found on the team's official social media accounts (@af_tfxc).
HOW THIS WORKS
The NCAA Outdoor Championships begin at two sites (the West Prelim in Sacramento, Calif., the East Prelim in Jacksonville, Fla.). Each region features the top 48 accepted athletes in each event and the top 24 teams in each relay. The top 12 finishers from each event at the two preliminary sites will advance to the final site of the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Austin, Texas, on June 7-10.
BY THE NUMBERS
The Falcons earned 20 bids into the NCAA West Prelim – a tally tied for the most since 2017 and fourth-most in program history. A total of 16 men and three women qualified in 15 different events to the opening round of the national meet (18 Falcons will make the trip to California).
WHO TO WATCH
The men qualified multiple athletes in the 5000-meter run (Eli Bennett, Sam Gilman, Scott Maison, Ethan Marshall) and 400-meter hurdles (Cameron Breier, Darek Hackett), while Air Force will be represented in both the men's and women's 3000-meter steeplechase (Rachel Crytser, Jason Renze). The Falcons qualified athletes in all four throwing events (shot put: Hayden Bullock, discus throw: Bullock, hammer throw: Jaret Prete, javelin throw: Joe Nizich) and both vertical jumps (high jump: Jalan Rivers, pole vault: Caiden Macktinger), while Javin Bostic (100-meter dash), Ava Gilliana (800-meter run), Sean Maison (1500-meter run), Ryan Johnson (10,000-meter run) and Cameron Harris (110-meter hurdles) round out the Falcons' list of competitors.
THE EXPERIENCED TRAVELERS
Sam Gilman will be making his third trip to the NCAA West Prelim, while Hayden Bullock, Darek Hackett, Cameron Harris, Ryan Johnson, Caiden Macktinger, Joe Nizich and Jaret Prete are all making their second trip.
HISTORY 101
Caiden Macktinger's selection marked the 16th-straight year that Air Force has qualified a pole vaulter to the NCAA West Preliminary.
AIR FORCE IN THE RANKINGS
Four record-setting Air Force seniors are listed among the nation's Top 30 in the final regular season edition of the TFRRS National Standings (May 15). Sam Gilman is tied for 11th in the 5000-meter run after clocking 13:30.36 at the Payton Jordan Invitational, while Ryan Johnson is ranked 17th following his 28:20.70 performance in the 10,000-meter run at the Stanford Invitational, Hayden Bullock is listed 21st in the discus after recording a throw of 194'9" at the Beach Invitational and Cameron Harris moved into No. 28 for the high hurdles after clocking a 13.56 at the Mountain West Championships. Sophomore Jalan Rivers joined Gilman and Johnson in the Falcons' Top 20 lineup, following a career-best high jump clearance of 7'1½" at the Drake Relays (No. 20).
SQUAD GOALS
With a combined time of 54:49.9, the men's 5000-meter quartet of Sam Gilman, Eli Bennett, Sean Maison and Ethan Marshall is ranked seventh in the May 15 edition of the USTFCCCA #EventSquad Rankings – which are determined by the cumulative season-best marks from a team's top-four athletes on the national descending order list. The hammer throw (11th, 245.92m), discus throw (12th, 217.06m) and 110-meter hurdles (13th, 56.67) are also ranked among the nation's top 15.
COMING UP
The 2023 collegiate season comes to a close in two weeks, as the top 12 finishers from each event at this week's two preliminary sites travel to Austin, Texas, for the final rounds of the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships on June 7-10.
MEET INFORMATION
The West Preliminary serves as the opening round of the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The men will compete on Wednesday and Friday, while the women will compete on Thursday and Saturday (a complete breakdown of Air Force events can be found on Page 2 of this release). Single day tickets are $15, while all-session passes are $40, and spectators must adhere to Sacramento State's Clear Bag Policy. Live results will be available for all four days of competition, courtesy of Flash Results and the NCAA, while ESPN+ will broadcast the evening sessions. In-meet updates regarding Air Force can be found on the team's official social media accounts (@af_tfxc).
HOW THIS WORKS
The NCAA Outdoor Championships begin at two sites (the West Prelim in Sacramento, Calif., the East Prelim in Jacksonville, Fla.). Each region features the top 48 accepted athletes in each event and the top 24 teams in each relay. The top 12 finishers from each event at the two preliminary sites will advance to the final site of the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Austin, Texas, on June 7-10.
BY THE NUMBERS
The Falcons earned 20 bids into the NCAA West Prelim – a tally tied for the most since 2017 and fourth-most in program history. A total of 16 men and three women qualified in 15 different events to the opening round of the national meet (18 Falcons will make the trip to California).
WHO TO WATCH
The men qualified multiple athletes in the 5000-meter run (Eli Bennett, Sam Gilman, Scott Maison, Ethan Marshall) and 400-meter hurdles (Cameron Breier, Darek Hackett), while Air Force will be represented in both the men's and women's 3000-meter steeplechase (Rachel Crytser, Jason Renze). The Falcons qualified athletes in all four throwing events (shot put: Hayden Bullock, discus throw: Bullock, hammer throw: Jaret Prete, javelin throw: Joe Nizich) and both vertical jumps (high jump: Jalan Rivers, pole vault: Caiden Macktinger), while Javin Bostic (100-meter dash), Ava Gilliana (800-meter run), Sean Maison (1500-meter run), Ryan Johnson (10,000-meter run) and Cameron Harris (110-meter hurdles) round out the Falcons' list of competitors.
THE EXPERIENCED TRAVELERS
Sam Gilman will be making his third trip to the NCAA West Prelim, while Hayden Bullock, Darek Hackett, Cameron Harris, Ryan Johnson, Caiden Macktinger, Joe Nizich and Jaret Prete are all making their second trip.
HISTORY 101
Caiden Macktinger's selection marked the 16th-straight year that Air Force has qualified a pole vaulter to the NCAA West Preliminary.
AIR FORCE IN THE RANKINGS
Four record-setting Air Force seniors are listed among the nation's Top 30 in the final regular season edition of the TFRRS National Standings (May 15). Sam Gilman is tied for 11th in the 5000-meter run after clocking 13:30.36 at the Payton Jordan Invitational, while Ryan Johnson is ranked 17th following his 28:20.70 performance in the 10,000-meter run at the Stanford Invitational, Hayden Bullock is listed 21st in the discus after recording a throw of 194'9" at the Beach Invitational and Cameron Harris moved into No. 28 for the high hurdles after clocking a 13.56 at the Mountain West Championships. Sophomore Jalan Rivers joined Gilman and Johnson in the Falcons' Top 20 lineup, following a career-best high jump clearance of 7'1½" at the Drake Relays (No. 20).
SQUAD GOALS
With a combined time of 54:49.9, the men's 5000-meter quartet of Sam Gilman, Eli Bennett, Sean Maison and Ethan Marshall is ranked seventh in the May 15 edition of the USTFCCCA #EventSquad Rankings – which are determined by the cumulative season-best marks from a team's top-four athletes on the national descending order list. The hammer throw (11th, 245.92m), discus throw (12th, 217.06m) and 110-meter hurdles (13th, 56.67) are also ranked among the nation's top 15.
COMING UP
The 2023 collegiate season comes to a close in two weeks, as the top 12 finishers from each event at this week's two preliminary sites travel to Austin, Texas, for the final rounds of the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships on June 7-10.
Players Mentioned
Distance
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Sprints
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400m Hurdles
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Throws
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Distance
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Distance
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Distance
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Hurdles
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Hurdles
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Distance
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Pole Vault
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Distance
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Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Javelin
/ Track and Field
Throws
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Distance
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High Jump
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