North Carolina
NCAA East Preliminary Round Day 1
Alcorta & Keefer Punch Tickets To Eugene
May 25, 2018 | Track & Field
TAMPA, Fla. – North Carolina senior Caroline Alcorta and freshman Anna Keefer became the first Tar Heels to punch their tickets to the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships at the NCAA East Preliminary Round Thursday at the USF Track & Field Stadium.
Alcorta, a senior from Springfield, Va., took third in the women's 10,000 meters in just her second time competing in the race in her career.
Running 33:58.22, she was strong and composed throughout the entirety of the race to finish just behind ACC champion Dorcas Wasike of Louisville and ACC runner-up Anna Rohrer of Notre Dame.
"I'm very proud of Caroline," distance coach Mark VanAlstyne said. "She has worked really hard for this, and she executed a pretty perfect race tonight. Our instructions were simple – just be in good position when the real running starts, and be ready to suffer. And really the only thing she didn't do was she didn't look like she suffered at all. She was in control and never in any danger. Really proud of her, but it's not over. We told her, 'You can go to Eugene and do some damage.'"
This is the first time Alcorta has qualified for the NCAA Championships in Eugene, and now the eight-time All-ACC performer gets to go for All-America status.
"It is really cool because this is the last opportunity I have to compete at nationals in Eugene with it being in Texas next year," Alcorta said. "It's really cool. I was hoping this wouldn't be it."
Keefer, the star freshman out of St. Michael-Albertville, Minn., took 11th in the women's long jump on her first attempt of 20-2 ½ (6.16 meters) – a wind-legal personal best.
After sitting through a lengthy lightening delay that stopped the long jump midway through competition, Keefer remained composed to get the mark on the board that she needed to advance on to the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
"Anna has been consistent in her performances throughout the year," head coach Harlis Meaders said. "Today in the first round of the national championships, that consistency paid off. Her jump of 20-2 ½ is not an all-time best, but that was all it took, and she will be making her first trip to Eugene."
TAR HEELS ADVANCING TO QUARTERFINALS
Men
• Senior Kenny Selmon smoked the competition once again in the men's 400-meter hurdles, running the fastest time in the event's first round to remain undefeated on the season and advance to Friday's 2:30 p.m. quarterfinals. He matched his season best, running 48.98, and is still one of only two competitors in the NCAA to clock sub 49 this season.
• Redshirt-freshman Alex Milligan qualified for Saturday's 1 p.m. quarterfinals in the 1,500 meters after running 3:48.04 in the first round. He was in the fastest heat on the day, with each of the four competitors qualifying on time coming from his heat. Milligan squeaked in to the quarterfinals by 0.01 over the next-fastest competitor.
• Freshman Isaiah Palmer qualified for Friday's 1 p.m. quarterfinals of the 400 meters after qualifying on time in the first round, running 46.56. He also squeaked through, beating the next-best competitor by 0.03.
Women
• Sophomore Brianna Duncan qualified for Friday's 1:45 p.m. quarterfinals of the 100 meters after clocking 11.30 in the first round to qualify on time. The time is her second best on the season, just 0.03 off her school record time of 11.27.
• Senior Cierra Dunston qualified for Friday's 1:15 p.m. quarterfinals of the 400 meters on time, running 52.92.
"The goal is to be in the top 12 and advance to Eugene," Meaders said. "I think our kids did a really good job of putting themselves in position to do that."
The meet will resume Friday at 8:45 a.m. with the men's discus, featuring Carolina sophomore Daniel McArthur looking to advance to Eugene. On the track, Tar Heels in first-round action will be senior Natisha Dixon in the women's 100-meter hurdles (12:30 p.m.), senior Brandon Reddick in the men's 200 meters (3 p.m.) and sophomore Brianna Duncan in the women's 200 meters (3:25 p.m.).
Tar Heels competing in the quarterfinals on the track looking to punch their tickets to Eugene on Friday are Isaiah Palmer in the men's 400 meters (1:30 p.m.), Cierra Dunston in the women's 400 meters (1:15 p.m.), Brianna Duncan in the women's 100 meters (1:45 p.m.) and Kenny Selmon in the men's 400-meter hurdles (2:30 p.m), .
Top-12 finishers in the quarterfinals advance to the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
"Congratulations to coach VanAlstyne, coach Logan Roberts and coach Abigi Id-Deen for punching the first tickets," Meaders said. "We are looking forwarding to adding more names to the list as the weekend goes on."
FRIDAY'S CAROLINA COMPETITORS
Men
Daniel McArthur – Discus, Shot Put
McArthur, a sophomore from Mooresville, N.C., is making his second trip the East Prelims. He currently ranks top three in UNC history in both the outdoor shot put and discus. He is seeded 18th in the discus with his personal-best throw of 184-1 (56.10 meters) from the Hurricane Collegiate Invitational on April 14, and he is seeded 25th in the shot put with a throw of 60-1 ¾ (18.33 meters).
WHEN TO WATCH
Discus – Friday, 8:45 a.m. (First Round)
Shot Put – Saturday, 5:30 p.m. (First Round)
Isaiah Palmer – 400 meters
Palmer, a freshman from Plano, Texas, took third in the 400 meters at the ACC Outdoor Track and Field Championships after running a lifetime-best 46.55. He is seeded 25th in the NCAA East Preliminary Round.
WHEN TO WATCH
Friday, 1 p.m. (Quarterfinal)
Brandon Reddick – 200 meters
Reddick, a senior from Orlando, Fla., has qualified for the NCAA east prelims for the first time in his career after running a lifetime-best 20.87 in the 200 meters to earn second-team All-ACC honors at the ACC Outdoor Track & Field Championships. He is seeded 40th in the event this weekend.
WHEN TO WATCH
Friday, 3 p.m. (First Round)
Saturday, 2:05 p.m. (Quarterfinal – if qualified)
Kenny Selmon – 400-meter hurdles
Selmon, a senior from Mableton, Ga., is a three-time All-America performer in the 400-meter hurdles and just captured back-to-back ACC titles in the event. Last year, he took fourth at the NCAA Championships with a school-record time of 48.60. Selmon is ranked first in the east and second in the country at 48.98.
WHEN TO WATCH
Friday, 2:30 p.m. (Quarterfinal)
Women
Natisha Dixon – 100-meter hurdles
Dixon, a senior from Marietta, Ga., is making her first trip to the NCAA east prelims and has qualified in both the 100-meter hurdles and 400-meter hurdles after running personal bests in both events at the ACC Outdoor Track & Field Championships. She is seeded 27th in the 400 hurdles at 58.79 and 42nd in the 100 hurdles at 13.46.
WHEN TO WATCH
100H – Friday, 12:30 p.m. (First Round)
100H – Saturday, 1:50 p.m. (Quarterfinal – if qualified)
Brianna Duncan – 100 meters, 200 meters
Duncan, a sophomore from Cambridge, Mass., has broken school records in the 60 meters, 100 meters and outdoor 200 meters this season and is making her first trip to the NCAA east prelims. Each of the records stood for at least 20 years. She is seeded 18th in the 100 meters with her time of 11.27 she ran at the Virginia Grand Prix on April 28th, and she is seeded 21st in the 200 meters with her time of 23.13 that she ran at the Hurricane Collegiate Invitational on April 14.
WHEN TO WATCH
100m – Friday, 1:45 p.m. (Quarterfinal – if qualified)
200m – Friday, 3:25 p.m. (First Round)
200m – Saturday, 2:20 p.m. (Quarterfinal – if qualified)
Cierra Dunston – 400 meters
Dunston, a senior from Powder Springs, Ga., has qualified for the east prelims in the 400 meters for the second time in her career. She owns top-three times in UNC history in both the indoor 400 and outdoor 400 after running a lifetime-best 52.40 at the ACC Outdoor Track & Field Championships to take fourth. She is seeded 14th in the event this weekend.
WHEN TO WATCH
Friday, 1:15 p.m. (Quarterfinal)
HOW TO FOLLOW
Subscribers to FloTrack Pro will be able to live stream the NCAA East Preliminary Round in its entirety with a monthly subscription.
Link to sign up and watch: https://bit.ly/2IMww77
Live results for the entire weekend will be available courtesy of FlashResults.com.
Live Results Link: https://on.ncaa.com/2rPoErR
A full schedule of events, heat sheets and a link to live results are also available at GoHeels.com.
Fans can follow @unctrack_field on Twitter and Instagram for live updates throughout the meet. UNC Track & Field is also on Facebook. A recap of performances and results will be posted on GoHeels.com following the conclusion of each day of competition.
Players Mentioned
