CAA Men’s Track & Field Earns Most National Championship Berths This Millennium
Hunter Peters
RESULTS
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (May 26, 2023) – CAA Men's Track and Field concluded the NCAA East Preliminaries on Friday night with one relay and six individual qualifiers for the 2023 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championship, marking the most for the conference since at least 2000.
Five of eight programs will have representation at Mike A. Meyers Stadium in Austin, Texas come June, as Hampton, Monmouth, North Carolina A&T, UNCW and Northeastern had qualifiers.
North Carolina A&T teammates Reheem Hayles and Shemar Chambers advanced in the 400m, while Northeastern sophomore Ethan Exilhomme and UNCW senior Josh Parks qualified in the 110m hurdles. Hampton sophomore Dugion Blackman passed through in the 800m, and Monmouth sophomore Evan Niedrowski qualified in the javelin during Wednesday's competition.
Hayles and Chambers, accompanied by Caleb Jackson and
Brandon Nya comprised the North Carolina A&T 4x400m relay team, which became the conference's first relay to qualify for the National Championships since 2013. The foursome qualified on time, posting a mark of 3:08.13 to finish fourth in their heat and 10th overall, and capped off a historic week for CAA Men's Track and Field.
Exilhomme and Parks earned automatic qualification to Nationals, becoming the first 110m hurdlers from the conference to advance since 2006. Exilhomme posted a time of 13.55 (w), his second fastest this season, while Parks crossed in 13.87 (w), with both taking third in their respective heats. Exilhomme makes it three straight seasons the Huskies will be represented at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, while Parks is the first male Seahawk to advance since 1997.
Hayles earned automatic qualification in the 400m with a third-place finish in his heat, while Chambers qualified on time, marking the first time since 2013 the CAA will send a 400m runner to the National Championship. Hayles posted a time of 46.74, and Chambers ran 46.89 as A&T continued its 400-meter excellence, sending at least one runner to the NCAA Championships in the event for the sixth straight season.
After missing the National Championships by one place last season, Blackman found redemption in 2023. The sophomore earned automatic qualification, finishing second in his heat with a mark of 1:51.61. Blackman is the first Hampton student-athlete overall and first from the CAA to advance to the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the 800m since 2019.
Northeastern senior Cory Gaither Jr. finished his season in the 400m hurdles, running 51.51 in the quarterfinals. Gaither missed the cutoff time by two-tenths of a second, placing 14th in the event. It marks the fifth time in six years the Huskies have sent a 400m hurdler to the NCAA East Prelims as Gaither, a grad transfer from Davidson, had his best finish at the regionals in his third straight appearance.
The CAA high jump champion and runner-up finished their seasons at the East Prelims as UNCW sophomore Donovan Lara took 28th and Monmouth junior Keven Kevelier placed 30th. Lara cleared 2.04m (6-08.25) to match his finish at the NCAA Regional from last season, while Kevelier recorded a mark of 1.99m (6-06.25) in his regional debut.
Northeastern sophomore Kyle Sarney competed in the 3000m steeplechase, marking the fourth consecutive season the Huskies have had an NCAA Regional qualifier in the event. The CAA Champion finished 33rd in 9:06.17 during his East Prelim debut.
Two runners – Northeastern sophomore Benjamin Godish and Stony Brook junior Shane Henderson – concluded the year in the semifinals of the 5000m. Both student-athletes making their NCAA East Regional debuts, Godish finished 36th (14:23.37), and Henderson came in 38th (14:30.14).
North Carolina A&T started the running events today in the 4x100m relay, finishing 21st (40.85). The CAA Champions were in the thick of it through the first three legs, but trouble on the fourth exchange dropped the Aggies out of contention.
The qualifiers for the 2023 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships will head to Austin, Texas, June 7-10 to compete amongst the Nation's best.
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