Tigers Set to Compete at NCAA Outdoor Track and Field West Preliminaries

COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri track and field will have 20 student-athletes compete at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field West Preliminaries May 28-31 at Texas A&M’s E.B. Cushing Stadium.

The Tigers will be represented by Valentina Barrios (javelin), Rahel Broemmel (5000m), Alicia Burnett (100m and 200m), Ames Burton (discus), Morgan Cannon (javelin), Skylar Coffey (shot put and discus), Claudina Diaz (high jump), Lasse Funck (800m), Val Galligan (javelin), Petra Gombas (hammer throw), Tarique George (discus), Kaesha George (javelin), Sam Innes (hammer throw), Reagan Kimrey (hammer throw), Steven Marks (100m), Kristi Perez-Snyman (high jump), Drew Rogers (10,000m), Callan Saldutto (javelin), Sterling Scott (triple jump) and Monica Wanjiku (5,000m and 10,000m).

The top 12 finishers in hammer throw, javelin, shot put, 10,000m, discus, triple jump and high jump advance to the final round of the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Oregon, on June 11-14.

In the 100m, 200m and 800m, the top three from each heat and the next six fastest times move on for 24 in total. The top five from each heat and next two best times will compete for the national championship in the 5,000m.

THE COMPETITORS

Headlining the qualifiers is Snyman, who captured Mizzou’s first-ever conference women’s high jump title with a school-record clearance of 1.90m (6-2.75) at the Southeastern Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships on May 16. Perez-Snyman enters NCAA competition ranked third in the region. She will be joined by fellow high jumper Diaz, who qualified with the ninth-best mark in the field after clearing 1.84m (6-0.5).

Additionally, Barrios headlines a deep women’s javelin group after earning a silver medal at the SEC Championship with a school-record throw of 58.20m (190-11), qualifying with the third-best mark in the West. She leads a strong contingent including Galligan, George and Cannon, who each secured a spot in the top 48 regional qualifiers. Gombas, competing in the women’s hammer throw, ranks 12th in the SEC in the event.

Distance standout Wanjiku will double in the 5,000m and 10,000m, with a top-10 regional ranking (sixth) in the 10,000m. She’s joined by Broemmel in the 5,000m. Burnett continues her dominant campaign with qualifications in both the 100m and 200m.

On the men’s side, Scott (triple jump, 10th), Innes (hammer throw, 10th), and Saldutto (javelin, sixth) all bring top-10 regional rankings into the preliminary rounds.

Rogers (10,000m), who impressed with a 12th-place finish at the SEC Championship, Marks (100m), Funck (800m) and Coffey (shot put, discus) will also represent the Mizzou’s men’s team at the meet.

TOP TIGERS

Mizzou is led in the individual event rankings by Perez-Snyman, whose mark of 1.90m (6-2.75) in the high jump at the SEC Outdoor Championship stands third in the country. She is joined by fifth-ranked Barrios in the javelin (58.20m (190-11) and ninth-ranked Wanjiku in the 10,000m (32.21.97) in the top 10. Diaz rounds out the ranked Mizzou women, slotting in at No. 12 in the high jump (1.85m/6-0.75).

On the men’s side, Saldutto leads the way, ranked 14th in the javelin (72.52m/237-11). Innes appears at No. 17 in the country and 10th in the region in the hammer throw. Scott, a 2024 second-team Outdoor All-American in the event as a freshman, ranks 19th nationally in triple jump.

MIZZOU IN THE EVENT RANKINGS

Heading into the first NCAA Outdoor Championships meet, seven of the Tigers’ event squads are represented in the top 25 of the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) rankings, with the women’s team at No. 27 in the country. The team is headlined by the third-ranked women’s javelin squad. Individually, seven of the eight student-athletes who competed in the event this season rank in the top 125 nationally, with two in the top 50.

Women’s javelin is joined in the top 10 by the sixth-ranked men’s discus team, who owns two top-50 placements nationally from No. 36 Coffey and No. 40 George. They are followed by the men’s shot put squad, which stands at No. 14. The team is also highlighted No. 20 women’s discus, No. 23 women’s hammer throw and No. 24 women’s 5,000m in action this weekend.

LAST TIME AT THE NCAA OUTDOOR WEST CHAMPIONSHIPS

At the NCAA Track and Field West Preliminaries, Missouri opened competition with strong efforts in the field events. Saldutto led off with a 15th-place finish in the javelin (68.17m / 223-8), while Coffey placed 36th in the shot put. Innes closed out day one with a 32nd-place mark in the hammer throw.

On day two, Skylar Ciccolini led the javelin throwers with an 11th-place finish (51.35m / 168-5). Kelsey Schweizer advanced to the 800m quarterfinals with a time of 2:07.29, while teammates Petra Gombas and Isabella Sokolova competed in the hammer throw and long jump, respectively.

Day three featured standout performances from the men, highlighted by Mitch Weber’s fifth-place finish in the discus (59.23m / 194-4) to secure advancement to Eugene, Oregon. Scott also advanced with a 15.77m (51-9) in the triple jump, which ranked seventh in program history at the time. In the men’s discus, four Tigers competed, with George finishing 18th, while Coffey and Rece Rowan placed 32nd and 34th.

Missouri closed the meet with several personal bests and near-qualifying efforts. On the final day, Kelsey Schweizer capped her weekend with a 10th-place finish in the 800m in a career-best 2:03.84.

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