BYU totals 45 entries for West Prelims

PROVO, Utah – BYU track and field qualifed 45 entries for the 2015 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field West Preliminaries May 28-30 in Austin, Texas.

The No. 14 BYU men’s team led the way tallying 32 entries, good for third-best of all West region schools trailing only Texas A&M (33) and Oregon (42). The women’s team will send 13 athletes to the prelims.

Shaquille Walker and Jason Witt enter the competition as the No. 1 seeds in the 800m and 10,000m respectively. Zachary Blackham comes in as the No. 9 seed in the high jump clearing 7-2.5 (2.2m) earlier this season.

In the men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase, the Cougars qualified seven total athletes. That number is the most of any school in the event, but it is also tied for the most athletes from one school in any event. James Tracy holds the eighth-fastest time in the steeplechase this season, followed by teammate Aaron Fletcher, who holds the 10th-fastest time.

Other men’s athletes to keep an eye on will be No. 14 Steve Flint, making his third career appearance at the West Prelims in the steeplechase, No. 13 Kyle Brown in the pole vault and No. 13 Mark Carlson in the 400-meter hurdles.

The women will be led by No. 9 Shea Martinez in the 800m. Martinez placed seventh in the 800m earlier this season at the NCAA Indoor Championships in March, and was named a USTFCCCA first-team All-American. Last season, Martinez finished 10th at the prelims and advanced to the 2014 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field National Championships where she finished 17th.

Anginae Monteverde comes in No. 12 in the pole vault, and sister Alyssa Monteverde-Dalton qualified with the 15th-fastest time in the 100-meter hurdles.

Anginae earned a USTFCCCA All-America Honorable Mention during the indoor season after participating at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

Other notable women with high seeds include Nicole Laws and Kelsey Brown-Gilbert, both ranked No. 17 in the high jump and 800m, respectively.

The West Preliminary will be held May 28-30 at Mike A. Myers Stadium on the University of Texas campus. The top 12 athletes in each event will advance to the NCAA Championships hosted by University of Oregon next month.

A complete list of qualified athletes with their event and seeds can be found below. 

Women

Men