Brown-Gilbert, Martinez and Monteverde advance to championships

AUSTIN, Texas – Senior Kelsey Brown-Gilbert ran her best race of the season at the right time finishing the 800m in 2:05.55 and clinching the 12th and final spot at the NCAA Championships Friday at Mike A. Myers Stadium.

"I am beyond excited to be going to Eugene," Brown-Gilbert said. "I knew in today's race I had to go out and stick myself in the mix. At these races numbers and rankings don't matter, it's just who shows up to run fast on that day. I was lucky enough to have Shea (Martinez) with me through the whole thing and pushing me this entire season. I would not be in the position I am without her and the rest of my team working and pushing me in practice."

Shea Martinez also advanced to nationals racing in the same heat as Brown-Gilbert, staying stride for stride with the leaders until the final few meters, finishing third in the heat with a time of 2:05.17. Brown-Gilbert and Martinez will be making their second career appearances at the NCAA Outdoor Championships with Brown-Gilbert placing 9th in 2013, and Martinez placing 17th in 2014.

"We had another great day," BYU head coach Ed Eyestone said. "Shaquille Walker looked great in winning his 800-meter heat, and Shea and Kelsey ran a strong race as a team. They buoyed each other up and fought hard. I’m really proud of them."

Shaquille Walker will join Brown-Gilbert and Martinez at nationals in the 800 meters after running a blistering 1:47.30 to win his heat and place second overall in the West Region. Walker ran in second place most of the race but took charge in the final 200 meters to win by nearly a second.

In the 400-meter hurdles, Mark Carlson’s career-best 50.77 placed him third in his heat and 10th overall, adding another championship berth to Eugene, Oregon, for the Cougars. Carlson entered as the 13-seed but put together two of his best races of the season to secure his spot.

"Mark got out really well and really strong," BYU head coach Ed Eyestone said. "He was leading going in to the second-to-last hurdle and powered his way to second place."

Anginae Monteverde became the first BYU women’s NCAA Championships qualifier in the early afternoon when she cleared 13–11 (4.24m) in the pole vault, a new personal record. Monteverde placed eighth overall after entering competition as the No. 12 seed.

"The thing that really started out the day well was Anginae," Eyestone said. "She was very strong and very confident from her early clearances of the opening heights."

In the final event of the night, Senior Steve Flint clinched his spot at nationals after taking eighth place in the 3000-meter steeplechase with a time of 8:49.21. Flint had competed at the West Preliminaries two times before, but will be be moving on to the NCAA Outdoor Championships for the first time in his final season.

Alyssa Monteverde-Dalton also advanced to the next round of prelims tomorrow in the 100-meter hurdles placing 14th overall with a time of 13.34. After day two of the West prelims, a total of eight Cougars have qualified for the NCAA Championships, including five men and three women.

The meet continues tomorrow beginning at 11 a.m. MDT. Live results of the event can be found here. A live stream of the event can be seen at the University of Texas track and field website. A complete list of BYU athletes and their results today can be found below.

Women

Men