Five Wildcats Advance at Day One of NCAA West Prelims

TUCSON, Ariz. – Arizona Track and Field closed out day one of the 2021 NCAA West Prelims on Wednesday with five Wildcats picking up qualifying marks and times.

After being named Pac-12 Men's Field Athlete of the Year, Jordan Geist punched his ticket to the NCAA Championships in both the shot put and hammer throw. He finished third in the shot put with a mark of 20.11m (65-11.75) and third in the hammer throw with a toss of 20.11m (65-11.75). He will try to qualify in the discus throw on Friday at 11:30 a.m. MST. 

Israel Oloyede will join Geist in Eugene for the hammer throw finals. He finished sixth on Wednesday with a mark of 68.71m (225-5). 

Johnnie Blockburger and Umajesty Williams both ran qualifying times in the 400m first round to advance to Friday's quarterfinals. Blockburger ran a time of 45.95 followed by Williams with a time of 46.08.

Victor Ortiz-Rivera clocked a time of 3:45.00 in the 1500m to advance to Friday's quarterfinals. He will race again at 3:45 p.m.

Trevor Volpe ran his second sub-21 200m of his career, clocking 20.92. He finished 25th, missing the qualification by just one spot. He will compete again on Friday as a part of the 4x100 relay team.

The Wildcats will be back for day two on Thursday at 11:30 a.m. as Kaelyn Shipley opens up competition with the women's javelin throw. A complete recap of the meet will be posted to ArizonaWildcats.com. You can also follow @ArizonaTrack on twitter throughout the day for live updates.

 
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