University of New Hampshire Athletics
Seniors Mike Shanahan and Elinor Purrier are headed to the NCAA East Prelims in Tampa next week.
NCAA Prelims: Purrier, Shanahan Bound for Tampa
5/17/2018 3:37:00 PM | Track and Field
DURHAM, N.H. – Senior track & field standouts Elinor Purrier (Montgomery, Vt.) and Mike Shanahan (Dover, N.H.) of the University of New Hampshire are headed back to the NCAA Championships to close out their illustrious careers.
Purrier in the 1500 meter run and Shanahan in the hammer throw both qualified to compete in the NCAA Preliminary East Round at the USF Track & Field Stadium in Tampa, Fla., from Thursday, May 24 to Saturday, May 26.
They are among 48 athletes in each event who will compete in Tampa. The West Regional takes place the same weekend in Sacramento, Calif.
The fields for the Prelims were announced Thursday.
Purrier, a 10-time All American, and Shanahan are coming off impressive showings in the NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships in March at Texas A&M in College Station, Texas.
Purrier won the NCAA Championship in the indoor mile and Shanahan earned first-team All American honors with a seventh-place finish in the weight throw.
THE NCAA FINALS
Twelve athletes from the East and 12 from the West in each event will advance to the 2018 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships from Wednesday, June 6 to Saturday June 9 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.
EAST PRELIM DETAILS
Purrier is seeded eighth in the 1500 meters. Her seed time is 4 minutes, 15.07 seconds, set while winning the title in the 1500 at the America East Championships on May 5.
The 48 athletes in the 1500 will run in four heats of 12 on Thursday, May 24 at 6 p.m.
The top five finishers in each heat along with the runners, with the next four fastest times, will advance to Prelim finals Saturday at 6:45 p.m. The top five finishers in each of two heats of 12 on Saturday, along with the runners with the next two fastest times, will advance to Eugene and the NCAA Championships.
Shanahan is seeded 12th in the hammer throw at 227 feet, 5 inches. He set the mark in a home meet on April 14.
The 48 hammer throwers in Tampa will compete on Thursday, May 24 at 11:30 a.m. Each athlete gets three attempts and the top 12 throwers advance to Eugene.
ELINOR PURRIER
- This will be Purrier's fourth consecutive appearance in the NCAA Preliminary round of the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
- The is her first time running the 1500 at the Prelims.
- The previous three years she has competed in the 3000 meter steeplechase and each time she has advanced from the Prelims to the NCAA Championships.
- This will be the ninth straight time Purrier has competed in the NCAAs at the end of a season.
- It will be her 10th time competing in the NCAAs overall in cross country, indoor track & field and outdoor track & field.
- Purrier won the NCAA Indoor mile title with a time of 4:31.76, which was .06 ahead of Colorado's Dani Jones in the closest finish in the event since 1991.
MIKE SHANAHAN
- This is Shanahan's third trip to the East Prelims.
- He is looking to advance to the NCAA Outdoor Championships for the first time.
- Shanahan's throw of 72 feet, 8.5 inches earned him a seventh-place finish at the Indoor championships.
- The result made him a first-team All American.
Allen Lessels
@UNHInsider
Allen.Lessels@unh.edu
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