Huskers Travel South for NCAA Championships

The 17 student-athletes from the Nebraska track and field team who qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships will travel to Austin, Texas, this week to compete at Mike A. Meyers Stadium.

The Huskers earned 14 bids to the National Championships, with 13 individual qualifiers and one relay team all qualifying in Sacramento, California, at the NCAA West Preliminary Round two weeks ago. There will be a total of 11 student-athletes from the women’s team and six from the men’s squad competing.

Action for the Big Red will begin on Wednesday when George Kusche runs in the 1,500-meter semifinal at 6:46 p.m. Luke Siedhoff will compete in the semifinals of the 110-meter hurdles at 7:32 p.m., while Burger Lambrechts Jr. will participate in the finals of the shot put at 8:40 p.m.

11 Huskers will compete on Thursday. The 4x100 team of Whitney Bridges, Lakayla Harris, Deja Ingram and Quashira McIntosh will run in the semifinals at 7:02 p.m. Chanel Freeman will compete in the semifinals of the 100-meter hurdles at 8:02 p.m. and Jasmine Barge and Michaela Peskova will race in the 400-meter hurdle semifinals at 9 p.m. Chase Wolinski, Brittni Wolczyk and Sydney Otto will all be in the finals of the javelin at 8:15 p.m. and Shylia Riley will leap in the long jump finals at 8:30 p.m.

On Friday, Mayson Conner will jump in the high jump at 7 p.m., while Carlos and Khalil Davis will toss the discus at 7:05 p.m. The finals for the 1,500 meters (7:41 p.m.) and 110-meter hurdles (8:12 p.m.) are both on Friday as well.

The NCAA Championships will commence for the Huskers on Saturday with the finals of the 4x100-meter relay (5:32 p.m.), 100-meter hurdles (6:12 p.m.) and 400-meter hurdles (6:57 p.m.).

ESPN will provide television and internet streaming coverage each day of the meet. All broadcasts will be live online at WatchESPN or the Watch ESPN app.

Noting the Huskers’ National Qualifiers
Chase Wolinski, Sr., Lincoln, Neb. (Javelin) - NCAA Rank/Seed: 10th/2nd
Will compete at the NCAA Championships for the first time...won the Big Ten Championship with a PR throw of 180-1 (54.90m), good for No. 5 in NU history.

Brittni Wolczyk, Sr., Lincoln, Neb. (Javelin) - NCAA Rank/Seed: 18th/19th
Will throw at the NCAA Championships for the fourth consecutive season...finished third at the Big Ten Championships with a mark of 169-4 (51.61m)...has a season-best mark of 174-1 (53.07m)...set a PR of 178-9 (54.48m) in 2017, the No. 6 throw in school history.

Sydney Otto, So., De Pere, Wis. (Javelin) - NCAA Rank/Seed: 32nd/22nd
Throwing at the NCAA Championships for the second time of her career...placed fourth at the Big Ten Championships with a distance of PR of 166-9 (50.84m), the No. 8 mark in program history.

Shylia Riley, Sr., Omaha, Neb. (Long Jump) - NCAA Rank/Seed: t-49th/20th
First time competing at the NCAA Championships...placed fourth in the long jump at the Big Ten Championships with a leap of 20-3 (6.17m)...has a season-best mark of 20-5 3/4 (6.24m)...set a personal-best of 20-10 (6.35m) in 2018, which is currently the No. 10 non-wind-aided jump in school history.

Jasmine Barge, Sr., Florissant, Mo. (400m Hurdles) - NCAA Rank/Seed: 20th/17th
Will run at the NCAA Championships for the second time...won the Big Ten title in the 100-meter hurdles (13.25) and placed third in the 400-meter hurdles (57.80)...ran a PR of 57.38 in the 400-meter hurdles at the NCAA West Preliminary Round, good for No. 4 on the NU top-10 list.

Michaela Peskova, Jr., Trnava, Slovakia (400m Hurdles) - NCAA Rank/Seed: t-21st/21st
Competing in her first NCAA Championships...finished fourth at the Big Ten Championships with a time of 58.18...set a PR of 57.46 at the NCAA West Preliminary Round, which is currently No. 5 in NU history.

Carlos Davis, Sr., Blue Springs, Mo. (Discus) - NCAA Rank/Seed: 23rd/7th
Making his second appearance at the NCAA Championships...won the bronze medal at the Big Ten Championships with a toss of 183-3 (55.87m)...earned the No. 9 mark in program history at the NCAA West Preliminary Round with a PR throw of 191-11 (58.50m).

Khalil Davis, Sr., Blue Springs, Mo. (Discus) - NCAA Rank/Seed: 49th/22nd
Competing at the NCAA Championships for the first time...finished eighth in the discus at the Big Ten Championships with a throw of 173-7 (52.90m)...has a season-best of 183-7 (55.96m) and set a PR of 188-4 (57.41m) in 2018.

Burger Lambrechts, Jr., Pretoria, South Africa (Shot Put) - NCAA Rank/Seed: 25th/10th
Competing in his first NCAA Championships...finished fourth at the Big Ten Championships with a toss of 58-4 1/2 (17.79m)...threw for a new PR of 63-6 (19.35m) at the NCAA West Preliminary Round, which ranks No. 6 on the NU top-10 list.

Whitney Bridges, Fr., Moore, Okla. (4x100m Relay) - NCAA Rank/Seed: t-69th/23rd
Running in her first NCAA Championships...helped the 4x100-meter relay squad finish fourth with a time of 45.46 at the Big Ten Championships...qualified for the NCAA Championships with a season-best time of 44.61 at the NCAA West Preliminary Round...will be a part of the first women’s 4x100-meter relay appearance at the NCAA Championships since 2003.

Lakayla Harris, Sr., Miami, Fla. (4x100m Relay) - NCAA Rank/Seed: t-69th/23rd
Making her first NCAA Championships appearance...assisted the 4x100-meter relay team in finishing fourth with a time of 45.46 at the Big Ten Championships... qualified for the NCAA Championships with a season-best time of 44.61 at the NCAA West Preliminary Round...will be a part of the first women’s 4x100-meter relay appearance at the NCAA Championships since 2003.

Deja Ingram, Fr., Florissant, Mo. (4x100m Relay) - NCAA Rank/Seed: t-69th/23rd
Competing in her first NCAA Championships...helped the 4x100-meter relay squad finish fourth with a time of 45.46 at the Big Ten Championships...qualified for the NCAA Championships with a season-best time of 44.61 at the NCAA West Preliminary Round...will be a part of the first women’s 4x100-meter relay appearance at the NCAA Championships since 2003.

Quashira McIntosh, Sr., Providence, R.I. (4x100m Relay) - NCAA Rank/Seed: t-69th/23rd
Running in her first NCAA Championships...assisted the 4x100-meter relay team in finishing fourth with a time of 45.46 at the Big Ten Championships... qualified for the NCAA Championships with a season-best time of 44.61 at the NCAA West Preliminary Round...will be a part of the first women’s 4x100-meter relay appearance at the NCAA Championships since 2003.

Mayson Conner, Fr., McCool Junction, Neb. (High Jump) - NCAA Rank/Seed: t-9th/5th
Making his first appearance at the NCAA Outdoor Championships...won the Big Ten Outdoor Championship indoors due to inclement weather with a clearance of 7-3 3/4 (2.23m), tying his indoor personal-best...has a PR of 7-2 1/4 (2.19m) outdoors.

George Kusche, Fr., Malelane, South Africa (1,500m) - NCAA Rank/Seed: 9th/7th
Running for the first time at the NCAA Championships...placed fourth at the Big Ten Championships with a time of 3:44.46...set a PR of 3:39.33 at the Payton Jordan Invitational, which currently ranks No. 4 on the NU top-10 list.

Chanel Freeman, Sr., Pembroke Pines, Fla. (100m Hurdles) - NCAA Rank/Seed: 26th/17th
Competing at the NCAA Championships for the first time...finished fourth at the Big Ten Championships with a time of 13.47...threw down a PR of 13.11pw at the NCAA West Preliminary Round, which is currently No. 5 all-time in NU history.

Luke Siedhoff, Jr., Crete, Neb. (110m Hurdles) - NCAA Rank/Seed: 25th/16th
Making his second NCAA Championships appearance...was fourth at the Big Ten Championships with a time of 13.88...ran a season-best time of 13.73 at the NCAA West Preliminary Round and has a PR of 13.71pw from 2018.

Top-10 Huskers
The Huskers have achieved several all-time top-10 outdoor marks in school history this season:
• Chanel Freeman - 100m Hurdles (No. 3 wind-legal - 13.20p)
• Anna Purchase - Hammer Throw (No. 3 - 199-6, 60.81m)
• Jasmine Barge - 100m Hurdles (No. 4 wind-legal - 13.25)
• George Kusche - 1,500m (No. 4 - 3:39.33)
• Jasmine Barge - 100m Hurdles (No. 4 all-time - 13.09Aw)
• Jasmine Barge - 400m Hurdles (No. 4 - 57.38)
• Judi Jones - 3,000m Steeplechase (No. 4 - 10:10.33)
• Chanel Freeman - 100m Hurdles (No. 5 all-time - 13.11pw)
• Chase Wolinski - Javelin (No. 5 - 180-1, 54.90m)
• Erika Freyhof - 10,000m (No. 5 - 34:16.54)
• Andy Jacobs - Pole Vault (No. 5 - 13-9 3/4, 4.21m)
• Michaela Peskova - 400m Hurdles (No. 5 - 57.46)
• Burger Lambrechts Jr. - Shot Put (No. 6 - 63-6, 19.35m)
• Sydney Otto - Javelin (No. 8 - 166-9, 50.84m)
• Judi Jones - 5,000m (No. 9 - 16:32.15)
• Chanel Freeman - 100m Hurdles (No. 9 all-time - 13.33Aw)
• Carlos Davis - Discus (No. 9 - 191-11, 58.50m)
• James Joycey - Hammer Throw (No. 10 - 203-4, 61.99m)

Nebraska Performs Well in USTFCCCA #EventSquad Rankings
The Big Red track and field team has several event groups ranked highly in the USTFCCCA #EventSquad Rankings this season. The ranking system uses the best qualifying marks from a team’s top-four ranked athletes in the event.
• #3 - Men’s High Jump
• #3 - Men’s Discus
• #3 - Women’s Discus
• #3 - Women’s Javelin
• #5 - Men’s Pole Vault
• #8 - Men’s Shot Put
• #10 - Men’s Long Jump

Five Huskers Win B1G Gold; Teams Finish Fourth
Chase Wolinski, Mayson Conner, Elijah Lucy, Jasmine Barge and Candice Dominguez were all individual Big Ten Champions, and the team’s finished fourth at the 2019 Big Ten Outdoor Championships this season.

Wolinski earned Nebraska’s first gold medal of the meet, winning the women’s javelin with a PR throw of 180-1 (54.90m). Not only was her final throw a PR and secured her spot as the Big Ten Champion, it also moved Wolinski up to No. 5 on the NU top-10 list. It was Wolinski’s first medal finish at the conference championships after finishing fourth last season and sixth in 2017.

Conner won the gold medal in the high jump, winning the event with a leap of 7-3 3/4 (2.23m). The event was contested indoors due to inclement weather and his mark tied his indoor PR. Conner swept both the Big Ten men’s high jump titles with the victory, winning the indoor title earlier this year.

Lucy also won a Big Ten title, winning the long jump with a leap of 24-10 1/2 (7.58m). This marked the second-consecutive title for Lucy as he was also the Big Ten Champion in the long jump during the indoor season.

Barge won the Big Ten title in the 100-meter hurdles in a time of 13.25. She had previously placed sixth in the event at the Big Ten Championships in 2017 and seventh in 2018. It was her third podium finish in the 100-meter hurdles and her first time winning a medal in the 100-meter hurdles at the conference championships. Her time of 13.25 is now the No. 4 wind-legal mark on the NU top-10 list.

Dominguez won the women’s high jump with a clearance of 5-9 1/4 (1.76m). It was her second podium finish at the conference championships, after finishing eighth during the indoor season and it was also her first medal at the Big Ten Championships. Dominguez was previously the Big Sky outdoor champion in 2017 and the indoor champion in 2016 at Sacramento State before transferring to Nebraska.

2019 Men’s Outdoor Season Outlook
The Husker men are coming off a 2018 outdoor season where they finished tied for 40th at the NCAA Outdoor Championships and finished third at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships. Nebraska will look to replace three Big Ten Champions in Antoine Lloyd (110-meter hurdles), Nick Percy (discus) and Kaiwan Culmer (triple jump). Lloyd and Percy were also first-team All-Americans. Luke Siedhoff earned first-team All-America accolades last season and will look to continue his success in the 110-meter hurdles this season after finishing seventh at the NCAA Championships in 2018. The men’s team is starting the outdoor season with momentum after claiming the 2019 Big Ten Indoor Championship. Mayson Conner, the Big Ten Indoor Freshman of the Year, was the most successful freshman high jumper in the country this indoor season and earned first-team All-America honors with a jump of 7-3 3/4 (2.23m) to finish seventh at the NCAA Indoor Championships. Jared Seay also competed at the NCAA Indoor Championships and finished fourth in the heptathlon with 5,847 points to earn first-team All-America status. Seay’s fourth-place finish was the best finish at the NCAA Championships by a Husker heptathlete since 2012. Senior Elijah Lucy will provide leadership after claiming the Big Ten indoor title in the long jump with a leap of 25-2 (7.67m). Freshman sensation George Kusche will also be an athlete to watch this outdoor season after setting two indoor school records - in the mile (3:59.61) and 3,000 meters (7:57.16o).

2019 Women’s Outdoor Season Outlook
The Big Red women tied for fifth at the Big Ten Championships last season and return a handful of athletes with NCAA Outdoor Championship experience and several point scorers from the 2018 Big Ten Outdoor Championships. Senior Brittni Wolczyk is a two-time second-team All-American in the javelin and has made it to the NCAA Championships in each of her three seasons. She was the 2017 Big Ten champion and is a two-time silver medalist. Raynesha Lewis qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the long jump last year, and Jasmine Barge was a second-team All-American in the 400-meter hurdles in 2017. Sydney Otto missed last season with an injury but qualified for nationals in the javelin as a freshman in 2017. The NU women will be looking to replace triple jump standout Angela Mercurio. The 2019 Big Ten indoor champion and second-team All-American exhausted her outdoor eligibility last year. Lewis, Ieva Turke and Shylia Riley will lead the Huskers’ horizontal jumps. Lewis finished 19th in the long jump at the 2018 NCAA Outdoor Championships. Riley was the Big Ten indoor long jump runner-up this year, while Turke was third in the triple jump and fourth in the long jump. On the track, Lakayla Harris ran the fifth-fastest wind-legal time (11.45) in NU history in the 100 meters last year. Harris claimed fourth (100 meters) and fifth (200 meters) at the 2018 Outdoor Big Ten Championships. Barge is one of the top returning 100-meter and 400-meter hurdlers in the Big Ten. The Huskers are ranked 49th in the preseason USTFCCCA Rankings.

Conner Named B1G Freshman of the Year
Nebraska high jumper Mayson Conner was named the Big Ten Men’s Indoor Freshman of the Year after a vote by the league’s head coaches. Conner is the first Husker male track and field athlete chosen as the Big Ten Freshman of the Year since NU joined the conference in 2011-12.

The McCool Junction native was the Big Ten champion in the high jump and earned first-team All-America honors after finishing seventh at the NCAA Indoor Championship. Conner cleared 7-3 3/4 (2.23m) at both meets, which is tied for the ninth-best mark in school history.

Conner was the top freshman high jumper in the nation at the NCAA Championships and became the first true freshman Husker male to earn first-team All-America honors in an individual event at the NCAA indoor meet since Bobby Carter in the long jump in 2010.

Pepin Named B1G and USTFCCCA Men’s Midwest Region Coach of the Year
Nebraska track and field head coach Gary Pepin was named the Big Ten Men’s Indoor Coach of the Year and the USTFCCCA Midwest Region Coach of the Year.

The Big Ten honor marked Pepin’s sixth selection as Big Ten Coach of the Year since the Huskers joined the conference in 2011-12, and it is his 28th all-time conference coaching accolade. The 2019 Big Ten men’s indoor title was Pepin’s 73rd career conference title and 43rd indoors. He has guided the Husker men to three Big Ten indoor titles in the last five seasons.

Pepin, in his 39th year as head coach at Nebraska, has also been honored as region coach of the year 11 times in the past 15 years. Of his 11 region coaching honors, this is the third time Pepin has been honored as the men’s indoor coach of the year (2005 and 2015).

Four Huskers Win B1G Titles; Men Claim Championship
Angela Mercurio, Lakayla Harris, Mayson Conner and Elijah Lucy all won individual Big Ten indoor titles, and the Nebraska men’s track and field team won the 2019 Big Ten Indoor Championship this season.

The Husker men entered the final day of the Big Ten Championships with an 11-point lead and led the entire day until Indiana took a 90-89 lead with only the 4x400-meter relay remaining. However, the Huskers’ relay team of Givon Washington, Tony Nou, Elijah Lucy and Isaiah Hutchinson ran a season-best of 3:09.12 to finish fifth, while Indiana finished eighth in 3:11.71. The Huskers finished with 93 points, and Indiana had 91, giving NU its first team crown since 2016.

The Husker men won their 67th all-time conference title and 38th indoors with the victory. It was the fifth Big Ten title for the Husker men since joining the conference in 2012. For legendary head coach Gary Pepin, it marked his 73rd career conference title and 43rd indoors.

Mercurio earned the triple jump crown for the first time in her career, posting a jump of 42-7 (12.98m) on her fourth attempt to win the event for her third-career Big Ten medal. Mercurio took first place in the triple jump in five of six meets this season.

Harris won the gold medal in the 60 meters with a personal-best time of 7.26. Her time ranked third in school history. Harris was the runner-up last year but topped her personal best by .12 seconds to take the title as a senior. She became the first Husker women’s track athlete to win a Big Ten championship in a running event since 2013. She followed that with the bronze medal in the 200 meters later in the afternoon after posting a personal-best time of 23.54, the third-fastest time in school history.

Conner was crowned the high jump champion after clearing a personal-best 7-3 3/4 (2.23m), which put him in a tie for ninth in school history and No. 11 in the nation this season. Conner had the competition locked up as the only jumper to clear 7-2 1/4 (2.19m), and he was perfect through that height. The McCool Junction native went on to achieve a new personal best and give the Husker men the Big Ten indoor high jump title for the fifth time in the last six years.

Lucy earned the gold medal in the long jump for the first time in his career after finishing fourth at each of the three previous Big Ten indoor meets. Lucy jumped a personal-best 25-2 (7.67m) on his final attempt, though he didn’t need it as four of his jumps on the day would have won the competition. He finished on top by more than one foot.

Husker Men Tabbed Indoor Dual Meet Champions
The Nebraska men’s track and field team was named the indoor dual meet champions by Track & Field News Magazine for the first time in the program’s history.

Following a strong performance at the Mark Colligan Memorial, where the Huskers scored 172 points to sweep the meet, the Huskers surged from No. 4 to No. 1 in the final rankings of the indoor season. The Huskers posted a 3-0 record in dual meets to top Indiana (1-0) and Texas A&M (2-0) for the top spot. The NU women came in at No. 4 in the final women’s rankings.

To be ranked, a team must compete in one or more dual meets (defined as a scored meet between four or fewer teams) during the indoor season. Teams are ranked on wins and losses, marks, and strength and depth of dual meet schedule. Teams are rewarded for taking dual meet competition seriously.

The Nebraska men won the absolute - indoor and outdoor combined - dual meet championship in 2017. This year’s NU men’s squad is the top-ranked team in the USTFCCCA Midwest Region and has several event groups that rank among the best in the nation. The men’s high jump is the No. 1 unit in the nation, while the 60-meter hurdles is ranked third, the shot put is ranked fourth, long jump is seventh and pole vault is ranked ninth. The Nebraska men won the absolute - indoor and outdoor combined - dual meet championship in 2017. This year’s NU men’s squad is the top-ranked team in the USTFCCCA Midwest Region and has several event groups that rank among the best in the nation. The men’s high jump is the No. 1 unit in the nation, while the 60-meter hurdles is ranked third, the shot put is ranked fourth, long jump is seventh and pole vault is ranked ninth.