Four Wildcats Punch Tickets to NCAA Championships at West Prelims

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The men of Arizona Track and Field opened up the NCAA West First Round Championships on Wednesday at Hornet Stadium in Sacramento. Impressively, four Wildcats qualified for the NCAA Championships in five different events on day one: Jordan Geist (shot put, hammer throw), Zach Landa (shot put), Youssef Koudssi (shot put), and Jared O’Riley (javelin). That is the most individual throwers that have advanced to the outdoor finals for the Wildcats in program history. Additionally, Trayvion White-Austin (200m) advanced to his running event quarterfinal on Friday.
 
“Everyone was able to advance today for the throwers, including me going back in the hammer throw and the shot put,” said Geist. “Going forward, we’re all in the same place and we’re all going to be at the national meet and that’s all that mattered today. We’ll get some more preparation in these next couple of weeks to try to show out in Austin.”
 
TICKETS PUNCHED
Jordan Geist – Second, Shot Put | Second, Hammer Throw
Zach Landa – Fourth, Shot Put
Youssef Koudssi – Sixth, Shot Put
Jared O’Riley – 12th, Javelin
 
FIELD HIGHLIGHTS
Jordan Geist got things started on day one by punching his ticket to the NCAA Championships in Austin with a second-place finish in the men’s hammer throw. With Geist coming into the day competing in both the hammer throw and shot put, he was looking to just go over 70m once in the hammer throw to qualify for the championship while still staying fresh for the shot put later in the day. That mark came on his second throw of the event with a heave of 72.62m (238-3). That mark puts him third among both West and East participants in the event today. It’s the fourth time in his career that he’s qualified for and will compete at the NCAA Championships.
 
In the men’s javelin, Jared O’Riley finished 12th overall to punch his ticket to Austin as well. Entering the meet, O’Riley was ranked 11th in the West Region, so there was the possibility that today’s competition would come down to the wire, which it did. He was able to hold onto the 12th-place spot though and qualify for the NCAA Championships as one of the event’s top-12 competitors. His best throw on the day was 68.56m (224-11). This is the second consecutive year that O’Riley has advanced to the NCAA Championships.
 
“It feels good to be…