South Dakota has qualified 16 athletes and one relay for the NCAA West Preliminaries held May 26-28 at Rock Chalk Park in Lawrence, Kan. The meet serves as the qualifying round for the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships on June 8-11.
This marks the second consecutive season the Coyotes have qualified 17 athletes for the NCAA West Preliminary.
Among this group of Coyotes are two All-Americans, nine 2016 Summit League champions in the respective events and 12 athletes who have previously competed at the meet. There are nine seniors in the group.
– A program-record 11 South Dakota State University track and field athletes – seven women and four men – have earned the right to compete at next week’s NCAA West Preliminary Championship.
Leading the way is senior Jazzelena Black, who qualified for both the women’s triple jump and long jump. A native of Oxnard, California, Black has posted the fourth-best mark in the West Region in the triple jump at 13.35 meters (43 feet, 9.75 inches) and ranks 32nd in the long jump at 6.04 meters (19-9.75). Black, who competed in the 2015 NCAA West Preliminary, won her second consecutive Summit League title in the triple jump at last week’s outdoor championships and is undefeated in the event this season.
The top 48 competitors in each event qualify for the NCAA West Preliminary, which will be held May 26-28 in Lawrence, Kansas. From there, the top 12 competitors will advance to the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships June 8-11 in Eugene, Oregon.
