BOONE, N.C. - App State graduate student
Ashlee Osaji, seniors
Taylor Smith,
Chris Wainscott, and
Niejel Wilkins, sophomores
Harrison Robinson and
Ava Studney, and freshman
Matthew Gray are ready to represent the Black and Gold at the NCAA East Preliminary Round in Lexington, Ky. on May 22-25. The meet is hosted by the University of Kentucky at the UK Track & Field Complex and will be available to stream on ESPN+.
Robinson will open competition for the Mountaineers with the first round of the men's 110-meter hurdles at 6 p.m. on Wednesday. The Jacksonville, Fla. native finished the season ranked 45th in the NCAA East Prelim Qualifying list after clocking a time of 13.93 in the men's 110-meter hurdles on March 22 at the Weems Baskin Relays. His time moved him to third in the App State all-time list. He also earned Third-Team All-SBC honors after stopping the clock at 14.00 to collect bronze in the men's 110-meter hurdles at the SBC Outdoor Championships. Twenty-four athletes from the first round, composed of the top-three times from each heat in addition to the next six fastest times, will advance to Friday's 6:15 p.m. men's 110-meter hurdle quarterfinals. The top-12 from Friday's quarterfinals will advance to the NCAA Championships for the semifinal and final rounds of the event.
Gray and Wainscott will compete in the men's pole vault and men's shot put, respectively. Both events are slated for 6:30 p.m. starts on Wednesday. Gray broke the App State men's pole vault record on April 20 at the Georgia Tech Invitational with a clearance of 5.33m (17' 5.75") and reset the record a week later at the App State Open with a clearance of 5.34m (17' 6.25"). The previous school record was 5.32m (17' 5.25"), set by Todd Poremba in 1998. Gray finished the regular season ranked 19th in the NCAA East Prelim Qualifying list and 36th in the NCAA overall. Additionally, he earned Second-Team All-SBC honors after securing silver with a clearance of 5.27m (17' 3.5") at the Sun Belt Outdoor Championships.
Wainscott will make his second consecutive appearance in the men's shot put event at the NCAA East Prelim meet. He recorded a season best mark of 17.88m (58' 8") at the Lenoir-Rhyne Open on March 16 to qualify for this season's prelim.The Indianapolis, Ind. native tallied five top-five finishes in the men's shot put over the course of the season and placed ninth in the men's shot put at the Sun Belt Outdoor Championships with a toss of 16.46m (54' 0"). He stands second in the App State all-time list with a toss of 17.95m (58' 10.75"), which he recorded in 2023.
On Thursday at 6 p.m. Osaji and Smith will make an appearance in the women's long jump competition. Osaji, who ranked fifth in the NCAA East Prelim Qualifying list and 14th in the NCAA overall, shattered the App State program and Sun Belt Conference records with a leap of 6.54m (21' 5.5") on March 22 at the Weems Baskin Relays. The previous App State record was 6.22m (20' 5.25") set in 1993 by Melissa Morrison and the previous SBC record was 6.47m (21' 2.75") set in 2012 by WKU's Jade Nimmo. The Madison, Ala. native collected First-Team All-SBC honors and SBC Women's Newcomer of the Year recognition after garnering gold in the women's long jump at the SBC Outdoor Championships with a leap of 6.26m (20' 6.5"). Smith ranked 18th in the NCAA East Prelim Qualifying list and 47th in the NCAA after recording a personal best leap of 6.32m (20' 9") at the App State Open on April 27, which moved her to second in the App State all-time list. Additionally, Smith was a three-time Sun Belt Athlete of the Week selection this season for her efforts on the track and in the women's long jump. She ranks fourth in App State all-time list in the women's 100 meters (11.53) and women's 200 meters (23.55).
The women's pole vault is slated for a 6:30 p.m. start on Thursday and will feature Studney. Studney rounded out the top-45 on the NCAA East Prelim list with a program record-breaking and personal best clearance of 4.04m (13' 3") on at the Lenoir-Rhyne Open on March 16. The previous App State record had been 4.02m (13' 2.25") set by Taylor Drummonds in 2017. Studney also recorded a clearance of 3.97m (13' 0.25") to take second at the App State Open on April 27. Over the course of the season, she tallied a trio of top-three finishes in the women's pole vault.
Friday's action will be highlighted by an appearance from Wilkins in the men's triple jump at 6 p.m. This will be Wilkins' second consecutive appearance in the event after competing at the 2023 NCAA East Prelim in Jacksonville, Fla. Wilkins ranked 14th in the NCAA East Prelim Qualifying list and rounded out the top-25 in the NCAA after recording a personal best leap of 15.83m (51' 11.25") at the App State Open on April 27. His leap ties him with Joel Gaddy's 2008 mark for fifth in the program all-time list. The Kinston, N.C. native also collected Third-Team All-SBC honors after finishing third for a second consecutive year in the men's triple jump at the Sun Belt Outdoor Championships. He recorded a leap of 15.55m (51' 0.25").
Up Next
The top-12 finishers in each individual event and top-12 teams from each relay event from the NCAA East Preliminary Round will advance to the NCAA Championships. The NCAA Championships will be held at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. on June 5-8.
