Three Bearcats are Ready to Compete at NCAA Track and Field Championships
By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications
SALEM, Ore. -- Willamette University track and field student-athletes Keaton Beckmann (So., Salem, OR/Sprague HS), Keith Carlson (Sr., Bainbridge Island, WA/Bainbridge HS), and Hope Duenas (Jr., Covina, CA/Covina HS) will compete at the 2019 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships this week at the Spire Institute in Geneva, Ohio. Beckmann will participate in the men's decathlon on Thursday, May 23 and Friday, May 24. Duenas will battle in the women's discus throw on Thursday, and Carlson will compete in the men's 5,000-meter run on Saturday, May 25.
The decathlon will get underway at 10:30 a.m. (EDT)/7:30 a.m. (PDT) on Thursday with the 100-meter dash. The first day of competition will continue with the long jump, shot put, high jump and 400-meter dash. On Friday, action in the decathlon will start at 10 a.m. (EDT)/7 a.ml. (PDT) with the 110-meter hurdles and keep going with the discus throw, pole vault, javelin and 1,500-meter run.
In the women's discus throw, competition will begin at 12:30 p.m. (EDT/9:30 a.m. (PDT) on Thursday. Prelims will be followed immediately by the finals. The men's 5,000-meter run is scheduled for 3:25 p.m. (EDT)/12:25 p.m. (PDT) on Saturday.
Beckmann qualified for the NCAA Championships with a score of 6,516 points in the decathlon at the 2019 Bearcat Invitational Multi on May 8. Carlson reached nationals with a time of 14:27.27 in the 5,000-meter run on on May 3 at the Portland Twilight. Duenas qualified for her second consecutive trip to the NCAA Championships with a mark of 148' 11" in the discus at the West Coast Invitational on May 11. Duenas placed 20th in NCAA Division III in the discus last season.
All three of Willamette's student-athletes at the NCAA Championships qualified with personal records that are ranked on the Bearcats' all-time lists. Duenas is second at Willamette in the women's discus, Beckmann is seventh in the decathlon, and Carlson is fourth in the men's 5,000-meter run.