Two Cougars qualify for NCAA Championships

AUSTIN, Texas – Day one of the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field West Preliminary was a success for BYU as Jared Ward and Tylor Thatcher punched their tickets to Eugene for the NCAA Championships and four others advanced to the semifinal round.

Ward took fourth in the 10,000 meters with a time of 30:01.87 while Thatcher wasn’t far behind with an eighth place finish and a time of 30:11.22. The top 12 advanced to Eugene, Ore., for the NCAA Championships June 5 to 8. Ward will have a chance to repeat as an All-American after he finished fifth in 2012.

Marcus Dickson was the first Cougar to advance on Thursday as he took sixth in the first heat in the 1,500 meters with a time of 3:47.93. Dickson did not qualify automatically as he did not finish in the top five of his heat. After waiting for the next three heats to finish, Dickson learned he would advance as he was among the top four runners that did not earn an automatic spot in the semifinals. Dickson will next run on Saturday.

Cade Lindahl took third in his heat in the 400 meters to advance to Friday’s semifinal. Lindahl finished with a time of 46.60, seven one-hundredths of a second ahead of Justin Allen of Baylor to earn the last automatic qualifying spot in his heat.

Two Cougars in the 800 meters were able to nab a spot in Friday’s 800 meter semifinal. Ryan Waite took third in the second heat with a time of 1:49.65 to move on to the semifinal. David Graham finished one spot behind in the same heat with a time of 1:49.66 and had to wait until the heats were done to learn his fate. Graham earned his spot in the semifinals by ranking among the six top finishers that did not qualify automatically.

The top 12 in the semifinals in each event will advance to the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore.

Several other Cougars competed on Thursday but did not advance. See results for all of BYU’s competitors below.

Visit USFTCCCA for complete results and to follow Friday's action.