Barrett, Sauder Qualify for NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships
2/28/2023 10:10:42 PM | Track and Field
A pair of Liberty Flames will be headed to Albuquerque for next weekend’s 2023 NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships, as Warren Barrett qualified in the men’s shot put and Kennedy Sauder made it in the men’s high jump.
The meet will take place March 10-11 at the Albuquerque Convention Center. Both Flames will be in action on March 11, with Sauder high jumping at 3 p.m. Eastern and Barrett throwing the shot at 9 p.m. Eastern. Action will air live on ESPN+.
This is the first time Liberty is sending multiple competitors to the NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships since 2010. That year, Sam Chelanga qualified in the men’s 5K and Jaime Watson made it in the women’s 800.
Barrett, who hails from Montego Bay, Jamaica, will be the Flames’ first men’s shot putter to compete at this meet since 2008 (Clendon Henderson). He earned a spot in the field with a program-record 64-1.25 effort at the Brant Tolsma Invitational on Jan. 21.
Barrett has enjoyed a breakthrough season after entering the year with a top shot put mark of 60-6.5 during his first two years as a Flame. He broke the program record with a mark of 63-3.5 at the Liberty Kickoff on Dec. 2 before improving it to 64-1.25 at the Brant Tolsma Invitational. Barrett has won three of his four shot put competitions this season.
A native of Lauderhill, Fla., Sauder high jumped a season-best 7-3.25 the last time he visited Albuquerque, for the Don Kirby Elite Invitational on Feb. 11. That mark is tied for No. 7 nationally this season.
Sauder has finished first in four of his five high jump competitions this season. Most recently, he successfully defended his ASUN Conference title with a 7-2.5 clearance on Saturday.
Last season, Sauder tied for 13th place at the NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships and shared 15th place at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships. That made him the nation’s only freshman men’s high jumper to collect indoor and outdoor All-America honors in 2022.
Featured in Main Photo: Warren Barrett (left) and Kennedy Sauder (right)
