OSU Sends Five To NCAA Outdoor Championships

June 03, 2013 | Cowboy Cross Country & Track

June 3, 2013

EUGENE, Ore. -

The Basics

The Oklahoma State track and field teams are sending five athletes to Eugene, Ore., for the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field National Championships, June 5-8.

How to Follow the Meets

Fans can follow the action live. Heat sheets and live results will be posted throughout the meet on ncaa.com/trackandfield.

ESPNU and ESPN3 will broadcast afternoon events on Thursday, June 6 (5:50-10 p.m. CT), Friday, June 7 (6:30-9 p.m. CT) and Saturday, June 8 (4-6 p.m. CT)

On Twitter, fans can follow @run4okstate for updates, or by using the hashtag #NCAATF.

Meet Schedule

Action in Eugene for Oklahoma State athletes will begin on Wednesday, June 5, when Fabian Clarkson participates in the men's 3,000 meter steeplechase semifinals at 8:45 p.m. CT. If he advances, the final will be Friday, June 7, at 7:40 p.m. CT.

On Thursday, June 6, Nick Miller takes his national No. 1 ranking into the hammer throw, final which will start at 3:30 p.m. CT. Also on Thursday, Natalja Piliusina takes her No. 1 national ranking into the women's 1,500 meter semifinal at 6:30 p.m. CT. If she advances, her final will be Saturday, June 8, at approximately 4:19 p.m. CT.

Girma Mecheso will compete in both the men's 10,000 meter final on Thursday, at 9:15 p.m. CT, and the men's 5,000 meter final on Saturday at approximately 5:23 p.m. CT, where he will be joined by fellow Cowboy Kirubel Erassa.

Quoting Coach Dave Smith

On the men's team as a whole, and their chances to score well at the National meet:

“The group we are taking is small, but we have a chance to score very well. I think Nick will score well in the hammer, and he could even win it. Girma has been so great for us, and he has the ability to run big race after big race. I see him scoring well in both the 5,000 and 10,000 meter races. In the 5,000, I think Kirubel can score well, too. He is so confident, especially after his race in Austin. He has the potential to score well along with Girma in that race. Fabian ran an incredible steeple to qualify, and it will take another big step forward for him to score in Eugene, but he is running better right now than he has all year, so he could do it.”

On Natalja Piliusina coming in to the 1,500 ranked No. 1 and using past NCAA experience:

“This year, she is more calm and she has better poise. She realized that even though last year was a disappointment, the world didn't end and she knew she would get another shot. Last year, she was trying to win the NCAA title and make the Olympic standard at the same time, and it was too much. This year, she's focused and really wants to win a national championship. Then, after this week, she can focus on getting her Olympic marks.”

On Kirubel Erassa and>Girma Mecheso both having a chance to score in the 5,000 meters:

“They both have a great shot. It will be a tough double for Girma. Usually if guys run a 10k, I don't let them run for two weeks, but he's trying to do it in 48 hours. He's durable and he has incredible work ethic. Above all, he's doing it because he wants to help the team. Both Kirubel and Girma were in tears when Tom Farrell didn't qualify. Girma even asked if he could scratch and have Tom take his place, which of course, he can't. Both of them are going out there to run for Tom. Both of them have a lot of confidence right now and are going in expecting to score. That's the mindset you have to have for this meet.”

Last Time Out

Nick Millerbroke his own school record and regained the NCAA's No. 1 spot in the hammer throw, and Natalja Piliusina won the women's 1,500 meter prelims to lead the OSU men's and women's track and field teams at the NCAA Track & Field West Preliminary Round, in Austin, Texas.

Miller, a native of Carlisle, United Kingdom, landed a 66-meter throw to ensure qualification, then just let loose. He launched the hammer 71.60m/234-11 through the rain, which was just one of his three throws that eclipsed 70 meters—all three throws would have won the meet by four meters.

On the track, Natalja Piliusina backed up her national No. 1 ranking in the 1,500 meters by running a 4:13.73, which made her the top qualifier in the West Region, and gave her an automatic berth into the NCAA Championships.

In the men's 5,000 meters, Kirubel Erassa, took second in his heat with a 14:11.95, meaning he automatically qualified for the NCAA final.>Girma Mecheso, just two days after qualifying in the 10,000 meters, took fourth in his heat of the 5,000 meters to qualify as well.

Fabian Clarksonwill return to the NCAA Outdoor Track And Field Championships after automatically qualifying in the men's 3,000 meter steeplechase. Clarkson, who was a second-team All-American in the steeplechase in 2012, ran a blistering 8:43.73, which broke his old personal best by more than two seconds.

On Top of the World

Several OSU athletes have made their way into the upper echelon of some world rankings.

On the men's side,>Girma Mecheso has the No. 15 spot in the 10,000 meters and Nick Miller is No. 66 in the hammer throw. Fabian Clarkson's 3,000 meter steeplechase of 8:43.73 in Austin has him at No. 96 in the world.

Natalja Piliusinaleads the women's side with two top-65 rankings. She holds the No. 63 spot in the 800 meters, and the No. 36 spot in the 1,500 meters.

In the under-23 world rankings, Tom Farrell is No. 3 in the 1,500 meters and fourth in the 5,000 meters, and Nick Miller is No. 6 in the hammer. On the women's U-23 side, Chase Ealey is No.4 in the shot put. Ealey is also No.1 in the nation on the U.S. Junior list in the shot put.

Miller Breaking the Cowboy Mold

Oklahoma State has made its name in the distance events - not just recently, but for most of the program's history. Sophomore thrower Nick Miller has become the lead figure in bringing the Cowboys into the national discussion in something other than distance.

During his young career, Miller has already earned All-America recognition in the outdoor hammer throw and the indoor weight throw. He has also won Big 12 titles and owns the Oklahoma State school record in both events.

Miller enters the NCAA Championships as the top-ranked hammer thrower in the country after his launch of 71.60m/234-11 at the NCAA West Preliminary.

After his dominating performance at the John McDonnell Invite on April 13, Miller became the first-ever OSU field athlete to be named Big 12 Track and Field Athlete of the Week.

All She Does Is Win

Junior Natalja Piliusina has firmly established herself as the Big 12's most dominant force in the women's 800 meters. In fact, she has never lost that race at the conference meet, racking up conference crowns in the indoor 800 meters her freshman, sophomore and junior years and outdoor Big 12 titles in all three years as well.

Girl Power

Caitlin Way and Chase Ealey are becoming forces to be reckoned with in the throwing events.

At the Big 12 Outdoor Championships, Ealey launched a personal-best shot put of 16.01m/52-06.5, which was the second-best mark in OSU history, and good enough to finish sixth in the event. She also threw the javelin for the first time all season at the Big 12 Championships, and finished fifth. Overall, Ealey earned seven team points for the Cowgirls that weekend.

At the indoor Big 12 Championships, Way scored in the weight throw for the Cowgirls, finishing seventh and earning All-Big 12 honors.

At the outdoor Big 12 Championships, Way shined again. She launched the weight a personal-best 60.02m/196-11, which was good enough for fourth place.

An Indoor Season For The Record Books

Both the men's and women's track and field programs made history during the 2013 indoor season, with the men taking eighth at the NCAA meet for their highest team finish since 1984 and the women taking fifth at the Big 12 Championships to match the highest team finish at the conference meet in program history.

Nick Millerwon the Big 12 title in the weight throw and Natalja Piliusina won her third indoor 800 meter title.