Track and Field: Aztecs qualify five for NCAA Championships

San Diego State wrapped up the NCAA West Preliminaries on Saturday with five athletes qualifying for the NCAA Championships in three events. Individually, Shaquena Foote (400m) and Xiamara Young (triple jump) punched their tickets to Eugene along with the 4x100m relay team consisting of Foote, Hannah Waller, Jada Moore, and Aji Mbye.

The Aztecs wasted no time punching tickets to the national championships with the 4x100m relay team qualifying in the first event of the day. Waller opened the race followed by Moore, Foote, and anchored by Mbye finishing the race in 45.35 seconds. It ranks as the second fastest time in both San Diego State and Mountain West history. They earned a big 'Q' with a third-place finish in heat number one and ranked seventh overall in the field.

With the quartet advancing to Eugene, San Diego State is the only non-power five program to send their 4x100m relay team to at least five of the last eight NCAA Championship meets. The Aztecs have sent theirs to six of those eight meets (2016-18, 2021-22, 2024).

Foote added a second event for her trip to Hayward Field, advancing in the 400m dash. Running a time of 51.85, she placed 12th to claim the final qualifying spot in the event. She is the sixth different Aztec to advance to the championships for the 400m in program history and first to do so since 2018.

Young celebrated her birthday by punching her ticket to Eugene in triple jump. On her third and final attempt, she recorded a personal best jump of 13.51m (44-4) to climb up to 11th place for a qualifying spot. The mark ranks fourth best in program history and is a quarter of an inch shy of the SDSU sophomore class record. She is the seventh different Aztec triple jumper to reach the outdoor championships and fifth to qualify for both indoor and outdoor nationals in the same season.

In the other quarterfinal races on Saturday, Charlize James finished 15th in the 100m hurdles with a wind-aided time of 13.19 seconds while Jessica Kain was 16th at 4:20.00 in the 1,500m. In the field, Sameerah Evans finished 39th in triple jump with a wind-aided mark of 12.58m (41-3.25). The final event of the weekend was the 4x400m relay with Rhea Hoyte, Waller, Sydney Bentley, and Foote posting a time of 3:36.12 finishing 20th.

San Diego State's four NCAA Championship entries this year is their most qualifiers for the national meet since they had five in the 2018 season. This year's NCAA Championships will be at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. beginning Thursday, June 6 and finishing Saturday, June 8.

NCAA West Preliminary Championships Results (SDSU and winners only)

400m Quarterfinals
1. Nickisha Pryce (Arkansas) – 49.93
12. Shaquena Foote – 51.85 (qualified for NCAA Championships)

1,500m Quarterfinals
1. Juliet Cherubet (Texas Tech) – 4:09.04
16. Jessica Kain – 4:20.00

100m Hurdle Quarterfinals
1. Yoveinny Mota (Kansas) – 12.66 (+2.3 wind)
15. Charlize James – 13.19 (+2.4 wind)

4x100m Relay
1. Baylor – 42.66
7. Waller, Moore, Foote, Mbye – 43.45 (2nd all-time, qualified for NCAA Championships)

4x400m Relay
1. Arkansas – 3:21.92
20. Hoyte, Waller, Bentley, Foote – 3:36.12

Triple Jump
1. Ackelia Smith (Texas) – 46' 11.5 (+3.3 wind)
11. Xiamara Young – 44' 4 (4th all-time, qualified for NCAA Championships)
39. Sameerah Evans – 41' 3.25 (+3.1 wind)