Women T&F See Five Advance to Nationals on Day Two of NCAA West Prelims
5/29/2025 11:24:00 PM | Track & Field
Five Bears punch tickets to Eugene, three advance to quarterfinals
COLLEGE STATION, Texas – A successful day two of the NCAA West Preliminary Round was had by the Baylor women's track & field squad, as five tickets were punched to the NCAA Outdoor Championships with two in long jump of Alexis Brown and Janae De Gannes, two in pole vault of Molly Haywood and Tenly Kuhn and one in the 10,000 meters in Ruth Kimeli.
Brown and De Gannes, a nationally known duo in the women's long jump, made no surprises with their qualifications to Eugene. Brown put up the No. 1 wind-legal mark of 22-9.25 on her second jump, opting out of her third, in the West Preliminary Round. De Gannes soared to the farthest ever mark for a freshman in the west prelims at 21-7.25 to become the ninth-best overall in the meet records.
In the women's pole vault, the top-12 would qualify to Nationals. With 11 girls qualified at the 14-6 height, including Haywood who cleared it on her third attempt, Kuhn went into a jump-off against Kansas' Mason Meinershagen, who Kuhn had just faced off against at the Big 12 Outdoor Championships two weeks prior. Both had a shot at the 14-6 mark, but neither cleared, forcing a lower mark. At 14-4, Kuhn clinched her spot in the top-12 and solidified two spots for the Bears in Oregon. This is the second time sophomore Haywood will be in Eugene and Kuhn's first.
Moving to the track, Brown, fresh off her advancement in the long jump, took part in the 100m prelims. In Heat Five, Brown raced to an 11.14 (+1.4 m/s) mark to push to the top and advance to the quarterfinals on Saturday.
In the 400mH, Calisha Taylor survived and advanced to the quarterfinals with a 57.26, finishing third in her heat.
In the 200m, top-ranked Tiriah Kelley cruised to a heat-winning mark of 22.76 to earn a big-q and qualify to the quarterfinals.
Kimeli rounded out the day for the Bears, becoming the first Bear since 2023 to punch their ticket in the 10,000 meters. Kimeli ran a 34:21.49 time, finishing 10th overall to move on to Nationals. She looks to become the first Bear to earn All-American status in the 10,000m since 2005.
Hannah Lowe and Michaela Francois competed in the 100m, finishing 30th and 35th respectively. Both will be competing in the 4x100 relay on Saturday.
Two seniors of Jasmine Gryne and Mariah Ayers finished their BU careers. Gryne finished 37th in the 400mH while Ayers finished 36th in the 200m.
Logan Todorovich rounded out her successful freshman season, finishing 39th in the long jump.
WHAT'S NEXT
The men will pick back up in competition, beginning with the 4x100 relay at 5 p.m. CT. The quarterfinals will take place, determining the final spots to Nationals.
Brown and De Gannes, a nationally known duo in the women's long jump, made no surprises with their qualifications to Eugene. Brown put up the No. 1 wind-legal mark of 22-9.25 on her second jump, opting out of her third, in the West Preliminary Round. De Gannes soared to the farthest ever mark for a freshman in the west prelims at 21-7.25 to become the ninth-best overall in the meet records.
In the women's pole vault, the top-12 would qualify to Nationals. With 11 girls qualified at the 14-6 height, including Haywood who cleared it on her third attempt, Kuhn went into a jump-off against Kansas' Mason Meinershagen, who Kuhn had just faced off against at the Big 12 Outdoor Championships two weeks prior. Both had a shot at the 14-6 mark, but neither cleared, forcing a lower mark. At 14-4, Kuhn clinched her spot in the top-12 and solidified two spots for the Bears in Oregon. This is the second time sophomore Haywood will be in Eugene and Kuhn's first.
Moving to the track, Brown, fresh off her advancement in the long jump, took part in the 100m prelims. In Heat Five, Brown raced to an 11.14 (+1.4 m/s) mark to push to the top and advance to the quarterfinals on Saturday.
In the 400mH, Calisha Taylor survived and advanced to the quarterfinals with a 57.26, finishing third in her heat.
In the 200m, top-ranked Tiriah Kelley cruised to a heat-winning mark of 22.76 to earn a big-q and qualify to the quarterfinals.
Kimeli rounded out the day for the Bears, becoming the first Bear since 2023 to punch their ticket in the 10,000 meters. Kimeli ran a 34:21.49 time, finishing 10th overall to move on to Nationals. She looks to become the first Bear to earn All-American status in the 10,000m since 2005.
Hannah Lowe and Michaela Francois competed in the 100m, finishing 30th and 35th respectively. Both will be competing in the 4x100 relay on Saturday.
Two seniors of Jasmine Gryne and Mariah Ayers finished their BU careers. Gryne finished 37th in the 400mH while Ayers finished 36th in the 200m.
Logan Todorovich rounded out her successful freshman season, finishing 39th in the long jump.
WHAT'S NEXT
The men will pick back up in competition, beginning with the 4x100 relay at 5 p.m. CT. The quarterfinals will take place, determining the final spots to Nationals.
Players Mentioned
Sprints
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Sprints
/ Track & Field
Jumps
/ Track & Field
Sprints
/ Track & Field
Sprints/Hurdles
/ Track & Field
Pole Vault
/ Track & Field
Sprints
/ Track & Field
Distance
/ Track & Field
Pole Vault
/ Track & Field
Sprints
/ Track & Field
Hurdles
/ Track & Field
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