Ten Western Kentucky Hilltoppers will travel to Eugene, Oregon, this week to take on the 2018 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Historic Hayward Field. This trip marks the 11th straight season WKU has been represented at the national championships by multiple student-athletes.
Monteserrat-native Julius Morris clocked a time of 20.44 at the East Preliminaries in Tampa, Fla,. two weeks ago, placing fifth in the region. The senior will compete in the semifinals of the 200-meter dash on Wednesday evening at 8:44 p.m. CT.
At the East Preliminaries, the 4×100-meter relay squad consisted of Morris, Will Bush, Kymari Gates and Eli Minor. The four-man unit finished with a time of 39.17, the third fastest time in outdoor program history. They took third in their own heat, automatically qualifying for the Championships, while finishing sixth overall in the region. WKU’s 4×100-meter relay team will run at 6:32 p.m. on Wednesday.
Minor, Morris, Gates and Oliver Alexandre made up the 4×400-meter relay team that also qualified for the Championships. While in Tampa at the East Prelims, the Hilltoppers clocked a time of 3:06.41, the second best time in the entire regional field. The 4×400-meter relay squad will compete in the semifinals of the event beginning at 9:48 p.m. Wednesday.
Five other Hilltoppers contributed to qualifying relay times throughout the season including Alec Tanksley, Austin Hayes, Denzel Villaman, Charles Shimukowa and Maor Seged.
(Courtesy WKU Athletics)