CU Buffs’ Kole Mathison finishes 21st in steeplechase at NCAA finals – Boulder Daily Camera

With the future of the Colorado track and field program in transition, a small contingent of Buffaloes hit the track on Wednesday in Oregon for the NCAA outdoor track and field championships.

Assistant coach Lindsey Malone’s final appearance for the Buffaloes won’t be an extended one.

Kole Mathison was unable to advance out of the men’s 3000-meter steeplechase semifinal, while CU’s only other entrant in the championship meet, fifth-year senior Nick Bianco, hit the halfway point of the men’s decathlon well down the leaderboard at Hayward Field in Eugene.

Mathison, a sophomore, finished 21st overall, posting a time of 8 minutes, 45.05 seconds. In an event in which the top five finishers in each of two heats, plus the next two best finishers, advance to Friday’s final, Mathison finished 10th in the second heat and was more than 15 seconds behind the final at-large qualifier for the championship heat.

Bianco finished the day in 21st place in the decathlon with 2,958 points. Among Wednesday’s events, Bianco’s best finish was a 12th-place mark on the long jump. He begins the first of his final five events on Thursday at Hayward Field in the 110-meter hurdles at 10:45 a.m. MT.

Malone, CU’s combined events coach, is facing the elimination of her position, as is her husband Casey Malone, the Buffs’ longtime throws coach.