NC State
NCAA Regionals
Iyevbele Qualifies for NCAA Championships
5/29/2015 12:00:00 AM | Track
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Kenyetta Iyevbele was the latest NC State athlete to book her spot at the NCAA Championships. The senior qualified and broke her own school record in the 800m race.
Alexis Perry and Paisley Simmons earned spots in the quarterfinals of their respective events, as the Wolfpack wrapped up the second day of the NCAA East Preliminaries.
Discus:
Nicole Chavis opened the competition for the Wolfpack, finishing third in flight one with a throw of 159'5". Tremanisha Taylor also recorded a top-five finish in her flight, taking fourth in the overall competition after two flights. Taylor finished 15th overall, which is seven spots higher than her entry seed of 22.
SeQuoia Watkins rounded out the event in the third flight. Watkins took 14th in the overall competition with a throw of 166'5". Her throw was less than a foot from earning a spot in the NCAA Championships.
On the men's side, Jule Rich finished 42nd with a mark of 163'0". Rich entered the competition as the 48th seed
High Jump:
Jonathan Addison took 18th in the high jump with a mark of 6'8.25". The junior came close on all three attempts at 6'10.25", but caught the bar each time.
He will compete at the NCAA Championships in the long jump.
100m hurdles:
Alexis Perry qualified for the quarterfinals after a strong performance in the 110m hurdles. The Durham, N.C., native automatically qualified and recorded a new PR of 13.16. Perry overcame a slow start out of the blocks and quickly closed down on her opponents to take third in the heat and 11th overall.
She will race in Saturday's quarterfinals for a chance to advance to the NCAA Championships.
800m:
Kenyetta Iyevbele provided the highlight of the night for the Wolfpack, as she took fourth in her heat and fifth overall in the 800m run to qualify for the NCAA Championships. Iyevbele entered as the eighth seed with a time of 2:04.07, but moved up three spots to finish with a season-high mark of 2:03.45.
The senior opened the race in the middle of the pack, and quickly worked her way to front group, where she stayed for the rest of the race. She used a strong kick in the final stretch to hold off several of her competitors to ensure her spot in the finals.
Despite finishing outside the top three automatic qualifying spots, she was the first athlete to qualify based on time.
Iyevbele has consistently improved her mark in the event throughout the season, shaving over three seconds off her time in her last four attempts.
The Charlotte, N.C., native will make her second career trip to the NCAA Championships. In her previous visit, she earned All-America honors.
200m:
Paisley Simmons qualified for the finals of the 200m dash after finishing fourth in her heat and 23rd overall. Simmons was the fifth athlete in the event to qualify based on time.
After a difficult first day of competition in the 100m dash, Simmons thundered down the track to take fourth in a highly-competitive heat. She extends her season by at least 200m and will race in the quarterfinals on Saturday for a chance to go to the NCAA Championships.
Long Jump:
Perry concluded her night in the long jump, finishing 20th with a mark of 19'6". She will not advance to the NCAA Championships in the long jump, but can advance with a strong mark on the 100m hurdles on Saturday night.
Up Next:
The Pack will wrap up competition at the NCAA East Preliminaries on Saturday. Check back soon for a breakdown of Saturday's entries.
