DES MOINES, Iowa — It’s been almost 20 years since an Oklahoma long jumper qualified for the NCAA National Championships. This year, the Sooners will have two.
OU qualified three athletes to the June 6-9 NCAA national meet Friday at the Midwest Regional at Drake Stadium. Frankie Wright and Dermillo Wise qualified in the long jump, while Chip Heuser made it in the pole vault.
Wright finished fourth with a jump of 25-feet, 21⁄2 inches, while Wise placed fifth, jumping 25-11⁄8. Heuser finished in a tie for second, clearing 17-1. Only the top five in each event qualify for the NCAA Championships.
The regional continues at 1 p.m. today.
Wright has a shot to qualify in two more events. In the 400-meter dash, he ran a personal best 46.24 in Friday’s preliminaries, good enough for a spot in today’s finals. He’s also in the finals of the 110 hurdles after clocking a 14.0.
Scott Martin just missed automatically qualifying in the pole vault, finishing sixth after a jump-off with Nebraska’s Gable Baldwin. Martin could still qualify as an at-large selection.
The Sooners have a shot with a women’s relay team as Leslie Cole, Yolanda Goff, Scottesha Miller and Larcia Urbina set a new school record in the prelims with a time of 44.14 in the 4x100. Only the top three relay squads advance to the NCAAs.
Goff qualified for the 100 final with a time of 11.46.
The men’s 4x100 relay team of Ronnie Pines, Marcus Pugh, Sheldon Leith and Jacobi Mitchell recorded the second fastest time of the day, clocking in at 39.90 to earn a spot in the final. However, Leith pulled a hamstring later while trying to qualify for the final in the 110 hurdles.
Pugh, the busiest Sooner, won both his heats while advancing to the final of the 100 and 200.
Leonarde Smith then turned in a personal best time of 51.33 to earn a spot in the 400 hurdles final.
Jessica Eldridge, ranked No. 1 in the Midwest Region in the 1500, won her heat with a time of 4:22.65.
The news was not so good for Tijahnni Newton, Katherine Johnson or Kevin Bookout. Newton finished ninth in the 400, Johnson was 11th in the high jump and Bookout was 14th in the discus, though Bookout can still reach the national meet in the shot put today, in which he’s Midwest Region’s top seed.
OU Sports
Sooners fare well on openng day
- OU Sports
-
-
It’s a recipe for success
Oklahoma softball coach Patty Gasso was answering questions Saturday after her Sooners clinched another return to the Women’s College World Series when, without really meaning to, she began to make it clear her job has, sort of, become ...
-
Tigers deny Sooners’ Big 12 title hopes
OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma wanted to win its first Big 12 tournament in 16 years on Sunday. Missouri needed to win it to get in the NCAA Tournament. Need topped desire at Bricktown Ballpark....
-
Sooners make winning look easy
As Oklahoma’s players locked arms around the pitching circle, coming together for what passed as a celebration following Saturday’s 7-1 NCAA Super Regional-clinching victory over Arizona, three gloves remained near second base....
-
There are no easy outs in the lineup
Looking for a gameplan to stop Oklahoma? Well, one may or may not be available, but walking two of the first three Sooners you face certainly isn’t part of it. Just ask Arizona’s Kenzie Fowler....
-
Sooners will play for Big 12 championship
OKLAHOMA CITY, — It’s been 16 years since Oklahoma won the Big 12 tournament. It’s closer now than its ever been to ending the streak. The Sooners rolled through Baylor, 7-2, on Saturday at Bricktown Ballpark to advance to the tournament’s ...
-
Sooners send five more to nationals
AUSTIN, Texas — Oklahoma track and field teams had five more individuals qualify for the NCAA Championship on Saturday evening at the NCAA West Preliminary. The men’s 4x100-meter relay team also advanced to the national semifinals....
-
OU sophomore Jao-Javanil wins NCAA golf title
FRANKLIN, Tenn. — Oklahoma’s Chirapat Jao-Javanil made Oklahoma golf history Friday, becoming the first Sooner, man or woman, to win an individual NCAA national championship....
-
Pitching staff is exactly where Golloway wants it to be
When the Big 12 tournament began, Oklahoma felt like it had the pitching staff to make a deep run. Dillon Overton, Jordan John, Jonathan Gray and Damien Magnifico gave them four quality starters and a closer — Steven Okert — capable of ...
-
Sooners shut out Wildcats, need one more win for WCWS entry
Oklahoma might have scored more runs, not committed an error and starting pitcher Keilani Ricketts could have been just a little more efficient along the way....
-
Sooners send 4 more to NCAAs
AUSTIN, Texas – Oklahoma’s track and field teams added four individuals to the list of Sooners advancing to the NCAA championship Friday at the NCAA West Preliminary. In addition to the four new qualifiers, Brittany Borman advanced to the ...
- More OU Sports Headlines
-
It’s a recipe for success
