Martins, Leonard Earn Top-Five Finishes at Junior Championships

Bloomington, Ind. - Nebraska track and field student-athletes Ryan Martins and Grady Leonard both placed in the top five in their respective events at the USATF Junior Championships at the Robert C. Haugh Track and Field Complex over the weekend.

Martins, a rising sophomore from Green Brook, New Jersey, placed fourth in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 9:45.81 on Sunday. Leonard, a Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, native, took fifth in the 6-kilogram shot put with a throw of 62-11 1/2 (19.19m) on Saturday. Leonard competed as a freshman for NU in the indoor season, but redshirted and competed unattached during the outdoor season.

The top two finishers in each event qualified for the U.S. team that will compete at the IAAF World U20 Championships in Tampere, Finland on July 10-15.

Eddie Jeans was also in action this weekend, competing in the England Athletics U23 Track & Field Championships in Bedford, England. Jeans placed eighth overall in the hammer throw with a mark of 192-11 3/4 (58.82m).