FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Junior Gabriel Binion highlighted the first day of UTSA track & field action during Wednesday’s NCAA West Region First Round at Arkansas’ John McDonnell Field. Binion earned his spot in Eugene, Ore. for the NCAA Outdoor Championships, while Roadrunners Nabil Tezkratt and Brice Chabot earned slots in Friday’s sprint quarterfinals.
Opening competition for the Roadrunners in the men’s long jump, Binion’s first-jump measurement of 7.73m (25-4.5) proved enough to move him on to Hayward Field in Oregon for the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships via a 10th-place finish. Hailing from Sydney, Australia, this will be his first qualification for Nationals as a Roadrunner, but his second go-around, after collecting All-America honorable mention in 2022 while he was a freshman at Grand Canyon.
As the evening rolled on, Tezkratt became the first Roadrunner to move on to Friday’s meet final in a running event. An East London, England freshman, Tezkratt registered a career-best 46.09 in the 400-meter preliminary’s fourth heat, placing 22nd in the prelim field and advancing to the quarterfinal round – the top three from each upcoming head and the next three fastest times will reach Eugene.
A Smithville, Texas junior, Chabot also moves ahead to the next round, advancing on a 200-meter time of 20.79 seconds in the first heat for 23rd in the preliminary field. As with other sprints, Chabot will be battling for one of the 12 tickets to Eugene in Friday’s quarters.
Also competing on Wednesday, junior Mike Roth registered a 21.08 in the 200m to finish 39th, while Chabot ran the 100m earlier in the evening with a 10.55-second, 41st-place finish. The lone UTSA men’s thrower, senior Jabari Bennett registered a 17.35m (56-11.25) measurement for 32nd place in the shot put.
Thursday’s competition in Fayetteville will mirror the opening day, but on the women’s side. UTSA will see action in the hammer throw (Isabella Simonelli), 100-meter hurdles prelim (Ayumi Kobayashi), long jump (Ida Breigan), 100-meter prelim (Thennelle Williams) and 200-meter prelim (Kiah Dubarry-Gay, Thennelle Williams).
Thursday’s competition can be viewed live on ESPN+ and results can be tracked here. For more information about the NCAA West First Round, check out the Meet Information Website.
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