Arizona track and field completed its final hoorah of the 2018 season with a trip to Eugene, Oregon for the NCAA Championships. The three-day trip to Eugene had many highlights from athletes competing in a myriad of events.
On June 6, the Wildcats started their first day of competition led by freshman runner Maksims Sincukovs and thrower Jordan Geist.
Sincukovs clocked a time of 50.49 in the 400-meter hurdles, setting a collegiate personal best and a new Arizona freshman record. With his remarkable time in Eugene, he now holds the No. 2 and No. 3 marks on Arizona’s all-time list. As a result, Sincukovs advanced to the final round.
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Jordan Geist ended with a fifth-place finish after throwing a mark of 20.32 meters in the shot put, garnering himself his second First Team All-American honors since January of this year. With his impressive toss, Geist also advanced to the final round.
On day two, the women’s 4×400-meter relay team had a strong run and earned themselves second team All-American honors.
The team of Diana Gajda, Karolina Pahlitzsch, Katelin Warren and Tatum Waggoner finished in 12th place with a time of 3:34.26, good enough for a season’s best and All-American honors.
The women’s 4×100-meter relay team of Savaughn Christman, Tatum Waggoner, Pamela White and Brena Andrews clocked a time of 45.10 to finish in 23rd place.
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On the last day of competition, Sincukovs earned First Team All-American honors with his time of 50.63 to take seventh place in the 400-meter hurdle. He was the only freshman in the race and was just one of three underclassmen.
After crushing day one of competition, Geist finished 12th place in the discus throw with a mark of 54.95 meters and freshman Turner Washington took 19th in the discus with a mark of 53.36 meters.
“Our three big freshmen [Sincukovs, Geist, and Washington] did a great job this year and put us in a great position,” UA head coach Fred Harvey said to Arizona Athletics.
Senior Alyssa Thompson competed in the heptathlon 100-meter hurdle, scoring 618 points, but exited the competition with a lower body injury, per Arizona Athletics.
After ending the NCAA Championships, the Wildcats distance runners will prepare for the upcoming cross-country season in the fall.
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