Preview: NCAA West First Round

COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Thirty-two athletes from TCU track and field are set to compete at the NCAA West First Round Championships hosted by Texas A&M at E.B. Cushing Stadium May 28-31.
 
The NCAA West First Round Championships features the top 48 athletes in each event. Athletes will look to finish in the top-12 of their respective events to secure their ticket to the 2025 NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Oregon.
 
MAKING HISTORY
The Horned Frogs are coming off a successful weekend in Lawrence, Kansas, at the 2025 Big 12 Outdoor Track and Field Conference Championship meet. As a team, the women finished third overall with 86 points, their best finish in program history since joining the Big 12. The men also made waves at the conference meet, finishing sixth overall with 64 points, tied for their second-best performance in school history (fifth in 2018).
 
Indya Mayberry was responsible for 28 of the team’s points, winning gold in both sprint events and helping TCU earn a silver medal in the 4x100m relay. The Fort Worth native was also named Big 12 Outstanding Freshman of the Year as voted on by the conference’s coaches.
 
TCU was crowned conference champions in six different events, including sweeping the men’s and women’s javelin and 200m titles. Preston Kuznof and Irene Jepkemboi won gold in the Big 12 javelin throw. The Frogs dominated the 200m with Kashie Crockett and Indya Mayberry winning event titles. Mayberry also won the 100m dash to sweep the outdoor sprints. Finally, senior Lloyd Frilot defended his indoor 800m conference championship, winning the outdoor title as well.
 
FROGS IN THE RANKINGS

TCU’s women have been ranked inside the top 25 of the USTFCCCA National Track & Field Rating Index for the entire outdoor season, including six different event groups ranked in the top 25. They currently sit at No. 15 heading into the regional meet.
 
Individually, the women boast eight top 12 times in the West Region Qualifying list led by Mayberry. The freshman boasts the No. 1 time in the 100m dash and the No. 5 time in the 200m. The Frogs also have a sprinters Iyana Gray and London Tucker sitting inside the top 10 seed times for the 100m dash, hoping to punch their ticket to nationals. Amelliah Birdow (400m hurdles) and Irene Jepkemboi (javelin) rank fifth in their respective events heading into the meet.
 
On the men’s side, TCU has five top 12 performances in the region. Senior’s Kashie Crockett (200m) and Lloyd Frilot (800m) have their sights set on Eugene. Jayden Douglas and Preston Kuznof are also in contention to advance to the NCAA Championships in the 400m hurdles and javelin throw, respectively.
 
SHE’S JUST A FRESHMAN
A freshman, Mayberry has burst onto the national scene, earning high praise on both the conference and national level. A four-time Big 12 Champion already, she swept the sprint races this season. During the indoor season, the Fort Worth native won both the 60m and 200m titles, and she followed it up with gold in the 100m and 200m at the outdoor conference championship meet to become the fifth woman in Big 12 history to sweep the conference sprints.
 
Mayberry also won her first National Championship, winning the indoor 200m (22.30) with the No. 7 performance in world history in the event. She has also been recognized on the watch list for The Bowerman Award, given to the most outstanding male and female track and field athletes in the nation.
 
SEASON RECAP
This season, TCU has seen a combined 14 school records fall. Sophomore hurdlers Amelliah Birdow and Jayden Douglas each lowered their own top times in the record books. Irene Jepkemboi also took down her own mark in the javelin throw and set a new Kenyan national record in the event, while freshman Preston Kuznof toppled the best mark in TCU history with his first collegiate throw (75.10m).
 
At the Big 12 Conference Championship Meet, junior Elise Dobson set the heptathlon school record with 5,338 points. Senior Llyod Frilot also took down head coach Khadevis Robinson’s program record in the 800m, dropping a 1:45.79. Mayberry also lowered the women’s 100m (11.03) and 200m (22.47) records.
 
Distance runner Graydon Morris added the 10,000m school record to his name this spring along with lowering his own 5,000m mark. His senior teammate Stone Burke also etched his name in the history books with the top 3,000m steeplechase time by a Frog. Lastly, Ben Kirbo vaulted his way to a new school record, clearing 5.47m in the pole vault last month.
 
The women have also seen school records fall in the 4x100m, 4x200m and Sprint Medley relay.
 
TUNE IN
First round competition begins on Wednesday, May 28, and runs through Saturday, May 31. The full meet schedule can be found here.
 
Fans can follow live results on Flash Results and stream all the action on ESPN+.
 
For all the latest TCU track and field news, follow the Frogs on X at @TCUTrackField, on Instagram at @tcu_track_xc and on Facebook at TCU Track and Field.