AUSTIN, TX – Illinois men's track and field qualified three more performances for NCAA Championships on the final day of NCAA West Prelims, giving the Illini five total qualifiers for next month's meet in Eugene, Oregon. Jonathan Wells (high jump), Jon Davis (5K) and David Kendziera (110m hurdles) each advanced on Saturday, while Dylan Lafond (3,000m steeplechase) and David Kendziera (400m hurdles) punched tickets on Friday.
"I think we were really competitive, and the guys that are going [to NCAA Championships] worked really hard and are very deserving," said Head Coach Mike Turk. "They put out some great performances. It's a diverse group: we have field events, sprints and distance runners so I'm really pleased with the group."
Having twice qualified for NCAA Indoor Championships, Jonathan Wells will be making his first appearance at outdoor NCAA Championships after placing 11th with a height of 7'0.5" (2.15m). Only in his second year of eligibility outdoors, the redshirt sophomore cleared two bars on Saturday evening after passing on the opening two heights to qualify.
"Wells has just fought his way through," Turk said of the high jumper. "It's been a tough go for him all spring, especially this meet. He just kept fighting and fighting."
Wells entered at 6'10.5" (2.10m) and cleared on his first attempt. With the field narrowing and Wells having missed twice at the following height, the Illini jumper cleared 7'0.5" (2.15m) on his final attempt to put him in the top-13 heading to 7'1.75" (2.18m). While Wells failed to clear his third bar of competition, Vincent Coleman (Long Beach) and Joey Bryant (Arizona State) three misses clinched a top-12 finish for Wells based on number of misses.
"The third attempt for any high jumper is a challenging jump," said Wells. "At that moment, I was thinking about all the preparation we've done, and I was confident about clearing that next bar. We just executed and gave ourselves a chance to go to Eugene."
Also punching his ticket to his first NCAA Outdoor Championships was true freshman Jon Davis in the 5,000m with a time of 14:34.45. Sitting in the middle of the lead group heading into the final leap, Davis surged past a handful of competitors to finish third in his heat, timing 14:34.45, and take one of section two's five automatic bids to Eugene.
"Jon just showed how talent he is, and the competitor he is," explained Turk. "He's just scratching the surface. There's some great things coming for him in the future."
Davis becomes the first Illini to advance to Eugene in the event since regional/prelims competition began in 2003, and is the first Illini true freshman to advance to the outdoor national meet since Juan Paul Green (400m) in 2013.
Already having qualified for NCAA Championships in the 400m hurdles on Friday, David Kendziera added a second event with a victory in his heat of the 110m hurdles quarterfinals. Albeit wind-aided (2.5 m/s), Kendziera's 13.45 defeated Marquis Morris in heat three and was the second-best time overall behind Aaron Mallet's (Iowa) 13.36.
"Yesterday I had a scare going over that first hurdle, but I knew all I had to do was survive and advance to quarterfinals," Kendziera said after the quarterfinal. I knew that if I fixed that first hurdle today, I'd get through."
The second time that the Illini hurdler has advanced in both the 110m hurdles and 400m hurdles, first since 2015, Kendziera is one of three hurdlers in the country to advance to Eugene in both events. Amere Lattin (Houston) out of the west region and Desmond Palmer (Pittsburgh) in the east will also compete in both events next month.
"It's something Coach Wheatley and I joke about, said Kendziera. "We just want to be the best dual hurdler out there."
Just missing qualifying, Illinois' 4x100m relay fell two spots shy of qualifying for Eugene, as the foursome finished 14th overall with a time of 39.76. The unit of Cole Henderson, Josh Eiker, Mo Maat and Devin Quinn finished fifth in heat one behind fourth place Baylor who's 39.62 time took the final qualifying spot. Still a young group, including two underclassmen, the Big Ten champs will return all four legs in 2018.
On Friday, Dylan Lafond advanced to his second career NCAA Outdoor Championships, clocking 8:56.31 in the 3,000m steeplechase. The Big Ten champion placed seventh in the event in 2015 before redshirting last year's outdoor season.
"It's my last one ever, so I'm really excited," said the Illini senior. "With the redshirt last year, I was hungry to be around the team and be around the NCAA system again. Making it back to Eugene means a lot to me."
NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships begin Wednesday, June 7 with men's semifinal rounds. Finals for each event will be held two days later, June 9. Complete information on the Championships can be found here, while tickets can be purchased here.
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Illinois NCAA Championships Qualifiers (Full Results):
David Kendziera – 110m hurdles (13.45) and 400m hurdles (49.67)
Dylan Lafond – 3,000m steeplechase (8:56.31)
Jon Davis – 5,000m (14:34.45)
Jonathan Wells – High Jump (7'0.5"/ 2.15m)
NCAA Outdoor Championships Schedule:
3,000m Steeplechase:
Semifinal – Wednesday, June 7 @ 7:02 p.m. CT
Final – Friday, June 9 @ 7:54 p.m. CT
110m Hurdles
Semifinal – Wednesday, June 7 @ 7:32 p.m. CT
Final – Friday, June 9 @ 8:12 p.m. CT
400m Hurdles:
Semifinal – Wednesday, June 7 @ 8:30 p.m. CT
Final – Friday, June 9 @ 8:57 p.m. CT
5,000m:
Final – Friday, June 9 @ 9:25 p.m. CT
High Jump:
Final – Friday, June 9 @ 7:00 p.m. CT
