USC star Rai Benjamin runs 47.98 in men’s 400 hurdles, Oregon’s Sabrina Southerland clocks 2:00.72 in women’s 800 in Sacramento

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

Jaylen Bacon knows what it feels like to run a 9.97-second race in the men’s 100-meter dash.

The Arkansas State star also knows what it’s like to have that performance be a wind-aided effort.

For the second year in a row, Bacon ran 9.97 at the Division 1 West Regionals, only this time it was a wind-legal mark at Sacramento State, equaling fellow American Ronnie Baker for the world lead and headlining all qualifiers into the NCAA championship meet June 6 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

INTERVIEWS

It was the fourth sub-10 effort of Bacon’s career, but the first wind-legal performance. He also clocked 20.38 in the first round of the 200 to match Texas Tech’s Divine Oduduru for the fastest time among the 24 quarterfinal qualifiers.

USC sophomore Rai Benjamin ran 47.98 to lead all national qualifiers in the men’s 400-meter hurdles, the No. 2 time in the world this year and No. 4 in collegiate history.

Teammate Michael Norman also posted the fastest qualifying time in the men’s 400 by clocking 44.67.

Reigning NCAA women’s indoor 800 champion Sabrina Southerland of Oregon and UNLV freshman Avi’Tal Wilson-Perteete produced an exceptional battle in their qualifying race.

Southerland ran a personal-best 2:00.72, improving to No. 12 all-time on the collegiate list. She also elevated to the No. 3 American and 13th in the world this year. Wilson-Perteete clocked 2:01.14, No. 19 in the world this year and No. 8 in U.S. U-20 history.

In what was expected to be a preview of the June 9 final, the top three women’s discus throwers in the country produced a strong dress rehearsal.

Kansas State junior Shadae Lawrence, the reigning NCAA champion, produced her second mark over 200 feet this season with a first-round throw of 203-9 (62.10m). Stanford fifth-year senior Valarie Allman had a second-round throw of 195-9 (59.68m), with Arizona State senior Maggie Ewen opening her series with a 194-9 (59.37m) to place third.

Minnesota junior Obsa Ali ran a collegiate-leading 8:36.49 in the men’s 3,000 steeplechase, leading the top four Division 1 performances this season. Brigham Young’s Matt Owens clocked 8:36.73 and teammate Clayton Shumway ran 8:36.76, with Stanford’s Steven Fahy also qualifying in 8:37.50.

Boise State redshirt sophomore Allie Ostrander led all women’s 3,000 steeplechase qualifiers in 9:40.20. Colorado’s Val Constien clocked 9:47.27 and New Mexico’s Charlotte Prouse ran 9:55.14 to win their respective heats.

It was a big day for both USC and Oregon in the women’s sprints and hurdles.

Kendall Ellis ran the fastest qualifying time of 51.03 in the women’s 400 for USC, followed by Oregon’s Makenzie Dunmore.

USC sophomore Anna Cockrell paced all qualifiers in the women’s 400 hurdles in 56.29, with Dior Hall leading five Trojans to advance to the next round in the women’s 100 hurdles in 13.03.

Arkansas sophomore Jada Baylark ran a wind-legal 11.04 to lead all qualifiers in the women’s 100, with USC having Twanisha Terry, Deanna Hill and Angie Annelus moving on, along with Oregon’s Jasmin Reed and Ariana Washington.

It was an equally strong day for the Houston men, with Amere Lattin advancing to Hayward Field in the 400 hurdles in 49.70 and qualifying for the next round in the 110 hurdles in 13.60, matching Illinois’ David Kendziera for the top first-round performance. Kendziera also qualified in the 400 hurdles in 50.30.

Houston had Cameron Burrell, Eli Hall and Mario Burke all run 10.33 or faster to advance in the 100, with teammate John Lewis III just missing the cutoff, despite running 10.36.

UTEP sophomore Michael Saruni edged Texas A&M’s Devin Dixon 1:46.37 to 1:46.47 for the top qualifying mark in the men’s 800.

Iowa’s Reno Tuufuli prevailed in the men’s discus with a second-round throw of 196-10 (60.01m), with teammate Brittany Brown leading all athletes advancing to the quarterfinals in the women’s 200 in 22.83.

All 12 qualifiers in the women’s pole vault cleared 13-8.50 (4.18m), including Arkansas juniors Tori Hoggard, Lexi Jacobus and Rylee Robinson. Stanford teammates Kaitlyn Merritt and Erika Malaspina also advanced.