Huskers Earn Pair of Top-10 Team Finishes at NCAA Championships

The Nebraska track and field team concluded the NCAA Outdoor Championships on Saturday evening in Eugene, Oreg.

The women’s team claimed a tie for eighth with 27 points, improving on last year’s 26th-place finish where they scored 10 points. The men’s team finished in ninth with 28 points. It is the men’s best finish since 2003. 

High jumpers Karsyn Leeling and Ela Velepec both soared to lifetime bests to tie for fourth in the women’s high jump, clearing 1.90m (6-2 ¾), good for a tie for second in school history. 

Velepec cleared two PRs en route to earning first team All-America honors, and Leeling improved on her 1.89m (6-2 ¼) mark that was set earlier in the year at the Spec Towns Invitational. 

Kelsie Belquist crossed the line in fifth in the women’s 400mH to earn first team All-America honors in her first year competing in the event. The captain set the school record earlier this year at the NCAA West First Rounds. 

Aleksandr Gerasimov finished 12th in his first outdoor nationals appearance, clearing 2.16m (7-1) to earn second team All-America honors.

Amelia Flynt was the first Husker to compete today, finishing 21st in the women’s discus with a throw of 52.13m (171-0), earning an All-America honorable mention to cap off her career.