Mackie and Palmer do not advance to finals

EUGENE, Ore. – The Olympic dreams of Nachelle Mackie and Katie Palmer came to an end on Saturday as neither runner advanced to the 800 meter final at the U.S. Track & Field Olympic Trials.

Mackie and Palmer finished 12th and 13th overall, respectively, with times of 2:04.45 and 2:04.53. Mackie took seventh in the first heat while Palmer ran in the second and final heat and took sixth. The top three in each heat plus the two next best runners overall advanced to Monday’s final.

While the two athletes did not qualify for the 2012 London Olympics, Saturday capped an excellent season for Mackie and Palmer. Mackie was the NCAA Indoor and Outdoor National Champion in the 800 meters and Palmer earned two All-America honors at the NCAA Indoor Championships in the 800 meters (first team) and the distance medley relay (second team.