Liberty University
NCAA Division I East Preliminary Round
Igberaese Books Trip to Eugene in Women's Discus
5/29/2021 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field
Liberty junior Chelsea Igberaese qualified for the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships in the women's discus for the second time in her career on Saturday. Her performance headlined the Lady Flames' final day of competition at the NCAA Division I East Preliminary Round meet at Visit Jax Track at Hodges Stadium.
Igberaese stretched the measuring tape to 174-11 on her second of three attempts, putting her into fourth place at the conclusion of flight two. She then had to wait more than an hour to see if she would qualify to Eugene, as the top 16 seeded throwers had yet to compete in flight three.
After some tense moments watching multiple throwers leapfrog her in the standings, Igberaese ended up as the event's 12th and final national qualifier. After previously throwing the discus at the 2019 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Austin, Texas, her second NCAA appearance will take place at the new Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. The women's discus is slated for 5:35 p.m. Eastern on June 12, the meet's fourth and final day of competition.
Igberaese's effort gives Liberty three total qualifiers to the 2021 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Felix Kandie (men's steeplechase) and Kyle Mitchell (men's shot put) will join her in Eugene.
Freshman Adelyn Ackley was the Lady Flames' closest non-qualifier on the day. She clocked a 5K time of 16:20.04 to finish ninth in her semifinal heat and 17th overall among the 48 competitors. One of seven freshmen to place among the top 18, Ackley came within 12.48 seconds of a trip to Eugene.
The fourth steeplechase race of her career saw Calli Doan battle through a pair of falls to place seventh in her quarterfinal heat and 21st overall with a time of 10:22.18. She became the first Lady Flame ever to compete in the steeplechase at the NCAA Division I East Preliminary Round meet.
Two weeks after setting the women's triple jump program record of 42-6 at the ASUN Championship, Makenzy Mizera returned to the same facility for her NCAA Division I East Preliminary Round meet debut. On Saturday, her top mark measured 40-8.25 for 35th place.
Women's NCAA National Qualifiers
Chelsea Igberaese – Discus – 174-11
Up Next
The 2021 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships will take place at the new Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., June 9-12. Kandie (men's steeplechase semifinals) and Mitchell (men's shot put final) will both be in action on the meet's opening day.
