University of North Carolina Athletics
Sarah Howard Is The 5th Tar Heel To Punch Ticket To Eugene
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The University of North Carolina track and field teams wrapped up their final day of competition in Lexington, Kentucky late Saturday evening. After being delayed several times by pop-up thunderstorms, the day was highlighted by redshirt senior Sarah Howard punching her ticket to the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon.
Howard advances to her third NCAA Outdoor Championships in shot put and first since 2015. The redshirt senior threw a short throw of 15.71 meters (51-6½) on her first attempt and scratched on her third attempt, but her second throw went 16.61 meters (54-6½) to give her seventh place and a spot in the NCAA Finals in Eugene.
“Happy to see Sarah Howard, a fifth-year senior, qualify for the NCAA Championships,” Head Coach Harlis Meaders said. “A great effort for her for staying focused through all of the delays and still having big throws when it counted. So I'm really happy to see Sarah get a chance to go back out to Eugene.”
Brandon Cachon was substituted in to join RJ Alowonle, Ceo Ways and Kenny Selmon in the men's 4x400 meter relay hoping to advance to the NCAA Outdoor Championships for the fourth time in a row. However, as the seventh seed, the relay finished 16th in 3:08.08 to narrowly miss returning to Eugene.
“The 4x4 put in a good effort, just came up a little bit short,” Coach Meaders said. “But still happy to see three of those legs advance in individual events, the two guys in the 400 hurdles (RJ Alowonle and Kenny Selmon) and Ceo [Ways] in the open quarter, and those guys still getting a chance to go to Eugene.”
Darryl Shaw kicked off the day for the Tar Heels in the triple jump. The sophomore came into his first appearance at the NCAA East Preliminary Round seeded 24th, but finished 18th with his farthest jump of 15.42m (50-7¼) on his third attempt.
“Darryl Shaw has had a fantastic junior year for us, finishing third in the ACC meet and then coming out here to the NCAA Prelims – first time qualifying – and had some solid attempts,” Coach Meaders said. “I know that he wanted more. I know that he'll be better next year, and hopeful he'll get a chance to advance on to Eugene.”
Alexis Gannon was a little banged up, but competed in the triple jump at the East Prelims for the second-straight year after finishing 29th in 2016. She finished 37th with a jump of 12.22m (40-1¼).
“She's been having some trouble with her heel,” Coach Meaders said. “But being the competitor that she is, she wanted to be able to try, came out and put forth her best effort today even though she was a little bit limited coming in. We're a little disappointed that she didn't get a chance to advance, but again she's another kid that wore the uniform really well for us today.”
Morgan Ilse, seeded 35th, finished 43rd with a time of 17:17.67 in her first appearance at the East Prelims.
“I think Morgan Ilse had a fantastic race,” Coach Meaders said. She was leading the race, just had a little trouble finishing it, but it was really a gallant effort for her first time out at the regional competition.”
Mark Derrick, who finished 42nd in the 10,000 meters Thursday night, finished 20th in the 5,000m with a time of 14:26.35. Even though he wasn't able to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships, Derrick will depart Carolina with an impressive resume as a four-time NCAA East Preliminary Round qualifier, a two-time All-ACC honoree, an All-Region honoree and a NCAA Cross Country Championships competitor.
“He's been a vital leader in our program,” Coach Meaders said. “Helping us bring along some of the young kids and really carried the team in moments when we need to be carried. So I'm really happy for all that Mark has done for the program. Sad to see him graduate and move on, but I know that he's going to accomplish a lot more in his life.”
UP NEXT: The Tar Heels will send five individuals to the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Ore. The championships will be held at Hayward Field at the University of Oregon from June 7-10.
TAR HEELS HEADING TO EUGENE
RJ Alowonle – 400-Meter Hurdles
After an injury riddled career, the redshirt-senior Alowonle heads back to the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships for third time – first time since 2015. He finished third in his heat and sixth overall with a season-best time of 50.21 at the NCAA Prelims. Alowonle will look to best his sophomore-year performance of fifth in the 2014 Outdoor Championships; he also finished 20th in the event in 2015.
“I know that I've been there, and I know that I can be with that competition,” Alowonle said. “And it's nice that I'm going to be going in there healthy, going in there ready to race, which is kind of a foreign thing to me because I haven't been able to do that for awhile. I have plenty of confidence. I know that I haven't ran the times that I've been wanting to run quite yet, but I know that that race is in there.”
Heading into the East Preliminary Round, Alowonle earned All-ACC honors for the seventh time after placing third in the 400-meter hurdles at the ACC Championships with a time of 50.42. Alowonle was seeded fifth (50.33) heading into the weekend.
“It's been a long journey, my five years,” Alowonle said. “Being hurt just about every year and just having the love and support of so many people, my friends and family, and just knowing that I can just stay strong in my faith with the lord. And it's awesome that I have the opportunity to go one more time and really give it my all.”
Anna Eaton – Pole Vault
The highlight of day one was Eaton, who finished eighth in pole vault by clearing a height of 4.20m (13-9¼) to qualify for her first trip to the NCAA Outdoor Championships. It came down to miss-and-go-home or make-and-advance for Eaton as she took all three attempts to make her last three bars to move on to Eugene. This was Eaton's first appearance at the NCAA East Prelims.
“Coming off of the UVA meet where I had a big PR, I had a few jumps where I missed the first two attempts and had to wait till my third,” Eaton said. “I try to not doubt myself ever during the competition. That was something I really focused on, which is just staying confident throughout, and just knowing that even if I miss two times that I could clear it and advance.”
Eaton has had a breakout season for the Tar Heels, jumping a lifetime best of 4.23 meters (13-10½) in pole vault at the Virginia Grand Prix in late April to secure second place in UNC history in women's outdoor pole vault. While she had an off-meet at the ACC Championships, she most certainly proved that she is an elite vaulter after punching her ticket to Eugene.
“It was incredible,” Eaton said. “It felt like almost a feeling of redemption because I had a bad performance at the outdoor ACC meet. So I really wanted to make it to Eugene in order to just compete once more and just get to jump again at the biggest stage in college track.”
When she made 4.23 meters at UVA for her personal best, Eaton had several good attempts at 4.31 meters. That would be a UNC record, and that is Eaton's goal. Her parents will also be in attendance, as they booked their tickets to Eugene moments after their daughter punched hers.
Sarah Howard – Shot Put
After not competing during the 2016 outdoor season, Howard, one of the best throwers in Carolina History, advances to the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in shot put for the third time.
“It's kind of relieving just because going into this meet this could have been my last meet ever,” Howard said. “It was a little stressful, honestly. My warm-ups weren't very great. My first throw was kind of rough, and, I don't know, was just like you have to pull it together, which I did on the second one. And that's what got me in. I'm excited to have one more meet in my collegiate career.”
She placed 14th in 2015 and 18th in 2014 at the Outdoor Championships in shot put. Her personal best of 17.04m (55-11), which is second in outdoor shot put in Carolina History, shows she has the potential to be right there among the best when it is all said and done.
“I've been second-team All-American twice now,” Howard said. “My goal is to go out there, make finals and get up on the podium as first-team All-American in my last go-around. But really just to go up there to have fun. I mean it's an awesome meet to be at and just the atmosphere, just enjoy that. Enjoy being with my teammates one last time, and just get a big one out there.”
Kenny Selmon – 400-Meter Hurdles
Selmon, one of the best hurdlers Carolina has ever had walk through its doors, came into the weekend seeded first with the fastest time in the country of 48.76. He advances to the semifinals for the third-straight year after finishing second in his heat, behind the defending national champion, and third overall with a time of 49.63.
“One of the hard tasks for me this weekend was that I had to understand it's just a prelim for the national meet,” Selmon said. The goal was just to advance, and so that's what I wanted to do. That's what my coach told me to do…although he was the NCAA champion, that really didn't phase how I was going to run my race.”
Selmon knows how to compete when it matters, as he ran that nation-leading time to win the event at the ACC Championships. Selmon heads back to Eugene one year after finishing third in the 400-meter hurdles at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in 2016. He also finished 12th in 2015. His sights are set much higher in 2017.
“I just want to put my best self out there,” Selmon said. “I want to make sure that I go out there, and I don't want to have any regrets. I want to walk away feeling like I did everything possible to win, and I ultimately I feel like if I put my best self out there, I'll walk away a national champion.”
Ceo Ways – 400 Meters
It has been a short, but impressive season for the senior. In only his second meet of the season due to hamstring injuries, Ways advances to the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the 400 meters for the third year in a row two weeks after winning the 400-meter ACC title for the second straight outdoor season. He finished fifth in his heat, but ninth overall, with a time of 45.74.
As one of the most talented 400m runners in Carolina history, Ways is third in UNC history in the 400m with his time of 45.55 and continues to perform his best in the postseason despite having only trained a little over a month this outdoor season. Ways finished 20th in the 400 meters at the Outdoor Championships in 2016 and was All-America in the event in 2015 after placing seventh.
“I'm hoping that I can go to get my All-American,” Ways said. “Just go and make it to finals and then whatever happens there happens.”