COLLEGE STATION, Texas (May 29, 2021) - On the final day of West Regionals senior Luis Grijlava qualified for the national outdoor meet in the men's 5000-meter run.
Due to inclement weather on day three of the meet, day four featured men's and women's events throughout the day.
The men's 5K took off first with Grijalva and freshman Nico Young in the first heat. Both men were positioned comfortably within the pack for a long portion of the race before making some tactical moves nearing the last lap. Grijalva finished strong with a massive kick to win the heat in a time of 13:57.00 and automatically qualify for nationals.
Young, on the other hand, barely missed the qualifying mark, placing eighth in the heat with a time of 14:03.91, finishing his first collegiate season at 17th in the west region.
Brodey Hasty competed in the second heat of the men's 5K, running a time of 14:24.14 to end his season ranked 29th overall.
Immediately after the men's race, the women loaded onto the track and waited for the gun to sound; senior Delaney Rassmusen was the only NAU woman in the first heat, running the race in 16:46.94, placing herself 33rd in the region.
In the second heat, seniors Taryn O'Neill (16:24.13) and Mikayla Malaspina (16:40.34) joined forces and conquered the first half of the race together, but slowly fell from the lead pack finishing 19th and 29th in the region respectively.
The Lumberjacks kicked off today's competition with the men's 1500-meter run; Senior Cade Burks was the only man in an NAU uniform at the starting line and finished the race with a time of 3:47.52 to place 23rd in the west region.
Next, junior Matilde Roe competed in the only Lumberjack field event of the day, the women's discus; throwing a mark of 47.60, Roe finished her season ranked 38th in the region.
Later, NAU junior Melanie Loff lined up to begin the women's 800-meter race. Getting into a strong position early on, Loff rounded the track nearing the front of the pack before ultimately crossing the line at 2:05.92, to place 16th overall.
Three Lumberjacks will return to competition in two weeks for the national championships in Eugene, Ore. on June 9-12.
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