12 Zips Qualify for NCAA Track and Field East Preliminary Round

12 Zips Qualify for NCAA Track and Field East Preliminary Round

May 21 | Track & Field

AKRON, Ohio – The University of Akron track and field program will send 12 student-athletes from its men's and women's teams – competing in 12 events – to the NCAA East Preliminary Round at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Ky., from May 27-30.

The meet, which invites the region's top 48 athletes in each event, serves as the opening round of the NCAA Outdoor Championships. The top 12 finishers in each event will advance to the NCAA National Championship in Eugene, Ore., from June 10-13.

AKRON MEN'S QUALIFIERS (Qualifying Rank-Qualifying Mark):
Lane Graham – Hammer (No. 15 – 220-2/67.12m); Amari Noble – Discus (No. 22 – 189-11/57.90m); Kaden Rambatt – Pole Vault (No. 33 – 17-3.50/5.27m); Jeffrey Usman – Long Jump (No. 40 – 24-10/7.57m); Christopher Vance – Hammer (No. 46 – 204-9/62.40m); Owen Wendl – Shot Put (No. 14 – 62-1/18.92m), Discus (No. 26 – 188-1/57.33m)

AKRON WOMEN'S QUALIFIERS (Qualifying Rank-Qualifying Mark):
Cassidy Allen – Pole Vault (No. 28 – 13-8.50/4.18m); Brook Boes – Shot Put (No. 46 – 50-9.25/15.47m), Discus (No. 46 – 168-6/51.37m); Hammer (No.39 – 195-2/59.49m); Gabrielle Griffiths – Hammer (No. 13 – 205-1/62.52m), Javelin (No. 44 – 156-4/47.66m); Megan Hipple – 10,000 Meters (No. 23 – 33:25.83); Mercy Jebitok – 10,000 Meters (No. 14 – 33:11.90); Jackline Nanjala – 400 Meters (No. 45 – 52.86)

For the complete list of entries, please log on to NCAA.com.

In the Event Squad rankings released on May 19, Akron is ranked among the top 30 in eight different events.

Akron is rated 12th nationally in the women's hammer, 14th in the men's hammer and men's shot put, 16th in the women's discus, 17th in the men's discus, 22nd in the men's and women's pole vault and 27th in the women's shot put.

Akron posted 38 career- and 40 season-best marks at the Mid-American Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships (May 14-16).

Akron has five individual student-athletes ranked in the Top 50 nationally by the Track and Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS) for the 2026 outdoor campaign as redshirt senior Owen Wendl (Medina, Ohio) is 24th in the men's shot put (62-1/18.92m).

Additionally, redshirt senior Lane Graham (Killbuck, Ohio) is 32nd in the men's hammer (220-2/67.12m), redshirt senior Gabrielle Griffiths (Fort Worth, Texas) is 36th in the women's hammer (205-1/62.52m), redshirt freshman Mercy Jebitok (Kapsabet, Kenya) is 45th in the women's 10,000 meters (33:11.90) and sophomore Amari Noble (Virginia Beach, Va.) is 49th in the men's discus (189-11/57.90m).