BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – On a hot, muggy day in College Station, Rob McManus and Harvey Cramb kept their seasons alive by punching tickets to Eugene at the NCAA West First Rounds on Friday inside E.B. Cushing Stadium.
The duo will join long jumper Hailey Coey at the 2025 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in two weeks at Hayward Field, with more potential Bobcat qualifiers still waiting in the wings ahead of the final day of regional competition on Saturday.
Elsewhere, both Owen Smith and Will Kelly wrapped up memorable careers at the national quarterfinals in the steeplechase on Friday.
“There were incredible efforts today from the quartet of men’s distance runners,” head coach Lyle Weese said. “The West Region of NCAAs is such a challenging region–so many incredible and outstanding athletes can’t get out of the region. For Harvey to make it through in the 1,500 meters and Rob in the steeplechase is truly outstanding.”
McManus, a senior from Cashmere, Washington, qualified in the 3,000 meter steeplechase for the third straight year, and joins Levi Taylor (2022-24), Duncan Hamilton (2021-23) and Nick Lam (2007-09) as the only Bobcats in history to make it to three straight NCAA Outdoor Championship meets.
The current face of ‘Steeple U’ never looked in danger during a commanding second heat on Friday in College Station, staying in the top three throughout the entirety of the nearly eight-lap race over barriers and water jumps.
McManus finished in 8:30.65, second in his heat and the third-fastest mark in the entire field.
The decorated distance runner earned Second Team All-American honors in the steeplechase in both 2023 (16th) and 2024 (13th) before earning another Second Team All-American honor in March this season in the indoor mile (15th).
“I’m really excited to be headed back to Eugene,” McManus said. “We’ve had steeplers to nationals for the past five years straight and it’s awesome to keep that streak going. I’m proud to be a part of this team and can’t wait to represent Montana State on the big stage again.”
Over the past five years, the Cats have sent ten total qualifiers to the national meet in the 3,000 meter steeplechase, with Hamilton going three times, Taylor three times, McManus three times, and Owen Smith once.
Smith, a senior from Billings, was trying to return to the big stage in the steeplechase out of the first heat on Friday but came up just short, placing 27th overall with a time of 8:59.83.
The veteran ends a standout distance career in the Blue and Gold on the track after earning Honorable Mention All-American honors in the steeplechase last year and a bronze medal at the Big Sky Championships this spring.
“Owen finished up a great track career with another great effort today,” Weese said. “He has brought so much to the team with outstanding performances and always being such a great teammate.
Will Kelly, a graduate student from Golf, Illinois, also ended his season on Friday night finishing 36th in the 3,000 meter steeplechase with a time of 9:11.14. In his lone year as a Bobcat, Kelly ran the eighth-fastest steeple race in program history and the eighth-fastest 10,000 meter race in school history.
“As a graduate student, we were unfortunately only able to have Will for one year,” Weese said. “We were so fortunate to have that one year with outstanding accomplishments and also being such an awesome teammate.”
Earlier in the day, Harvey Cramb backed up his incredible season by punching his ticket to Eugene in the 1,500 meters.
Cramb, a sophomore from Brisbane, Australia, becomes the fourth Bobcat man to qualify for nationals in the 1,500 meters, joining Cristian Soratos (2015), Patrick Casey (2011) and Mike Feist (2000).
The Aussie led for the first three laps of the race before getting stuck on the rail, then held on down the stretch to grab one of the five auto-bids by placing fourth in his heat with a time of 3:47.28.
“Harvey stayed composed in a stacked heat, and even when he got into a tough position, he battled his way through,” Weese said.
It continues an incredible year for Cramb, who finished 11th in the mile at the 2025 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships in March to earn Second Team All-American honors, then won a memorable Big Sky title in the 1,500 meters two weeks ago over NAU’s Colin Sahlman.
Now, Cramb is headed to the biggest stage in collegiate track and field.
UP NEXT
Montana State track and field concludes their stay at the NCAA West First Rounds on Saturday night at E.B. Cushing Stadium.
Grace Gilbreth kicks off the evening in the third heat of the 3,000 meter steeplechase at approximately 6 p.m. CT. The school record-holder is seeded 12th in the West Region and is looking to become the first Bobcat woman ever to advance to the NCAA Championships in the steeplechase.
Later, Kyla Christopher-Moody will look to keep her legendary career alive when she toes the line for the 5,000 meters at 8:10 p.m. CT. The graduate student who holds four school records is seeded 26th in the field and will be aiming at one of the 12 tickets to Eugene.
Finally, the women’s 4×400 meter relay team will close out the meet in the final event of the week, racing in the final heat at approximately 9 p.m. CT.
The quartet of Olivia Lewis, Peyton Garrison, Giulia Gandolfi, and Caroline Hawkes are trying to become the first-ever Bobcat relay to advance to the NCAA Championships and enter the regional meet seeded ninth in the 24-team field.
The Cats will need to either finish in the top three in their heat or run one of the next three-fastest times to book their tickets to Eugene.
The meet will stream live on ESPN+ beginning at 4 p.m. MT/5 p.m. CT.
A full meet schedule is available here and start lists can be viewed here. A meet central webpage with links to live results, information, streaming, and more can be found here.
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