The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper The Spokesman-Review
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883
Current Temperature
39°F
Current Conditions
Overcast clouds
View complete weather report

Color Scheme

Subscribe now

NCAA track and field: Washington State’s Evans Kurui leads group of 30 Cougars to NCAA West regional

WSU distance runner Evans Kurui posted the top qualifying time for the men’s 10,000 meters at the NCAA West regional with a mark of 27:37 at the April 4 Stanford Invitational. (Courtesy of WSU Athletics)
From staff reports

The Washington State track and field team is sending one of its largest groups to the NCAA West regional.

The Cougars will field 30 athletes – second most in program history – with 18 men and 12 women, beginning Wednesday in College Station, Texas.

WSU is led by men’s distance runner Evans Kurui, a freshman from Kenya, who has the top qualifying time in the 10,000 meters and is fourth in the 5,000. Sprinter Mason Lawyer is 12th in the 200 meters, the only other men’s team member in the top 15.

The Cougars women bring the eighth-best 10,000 qualifier in Zenah Cheptoo, who is joined in the event by teammate and Colville High grad Alaina Stone Boggs (36th qualifier).

WSU also brings the ninth-ranked women’s pole vaulter in Tatum Moku and both men’s and women’s 4x100 relay teams.

The top 12 placers in individual and team events qualify for the NCAA Championships in Eugene.

• Gonzaga men’s and women’s track will send a 10 athletes – six women and four men – to the NCAA West regional.

Lewis and Clark graduate Wil Smith is ranked ninth in the men’s 10,000 qualifying and 27th in the 5,000. Women’s distance runner Rosina Machu is also ninth in the 10,000.

• Eastern Washington will field four athletes at the NCAA West regional – three women and one man – led by Caitlin Simmons, ranked 17th in women’s triple jump and 23rd in long jump qualifying.

• Whitworth had two All-American placers at the NCAA Division III Championships in Geneva, Ohio, which runs through Saturday.

Medical Lake High grad Amblessed Okemgbo had a career-best second-place finish in the women’s discus with a mark of 150 feet, 9 inches. Devin Chelin earned seventh place in the women’s javelin with a 132-10 throw.