Saturday, May 30
Lexington, Ky.
5:15 PM ET
Liberty University
at
NCAA Division I East First Rounds
Allie Zealand (left) and Katrina Schlenker (right) both raced their way to the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Saturday.
Schlenker, Zealand Race to Eugene Qualifiers
5/30/2026 9:24:00 PM | Track and Field
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Liberty went a perfect two-for-two in punching Eugene tickets on Saturday, the fourth and final day of the NCAA Division I East First Rounds meet. Distance runners Katrina Schlenker (women's steeplechase) and Allie Zealand (women's 1,500) both raced their way into the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships with outstanding performances.
Liberty will take six athletes to the 2026 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships, June 10-13 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., doubling its total of NCAA national qualifiers from 2025. They include two men's throwers (Christian Hicks – discus and Ben Shughart – javelin), two men's horizontal jumpers (Gilles Ouedraogo – triple jump and Markus White – long jump) and two women's distance runners (Schlenker and Zealand).
Shortly after Zealand had officially punched her ticket late Saturday afternoon, Schlenker put an exclamation point on Liberty's stay in the Bluegrass State. Running in easily the fastest of the women's steeplechase's three quarterfinal heats, Schlenker steadily worked her way up through the field. She then unleashed a 72.57-second final lap (second fastest among the 48 competitors in Lexington) to place fifth in her section in 9:50.85, slashing 16 seconds off the senior's previous best.
That stood up as the second of three time qualifiers to Eugene and ranked as the ninth fastest time overall in Lexington on Saturday. Schlenker entered the day ranked No. 44 nationally for the women's steeplechase at 10:06.44 and ended it ranked No. 13 at 9:50.85.
Schlenker also scared Calli Doan's program record of 9:49.54, a time which earned 10th place in the 2024 NCAA national final. Schlenker's qualification gives Liberty a women's steeplechase national qualifier for the third time in four years, following Doan's appearances in 2023 and 2024.
Schlenker's NCAA national debut will come in the women's steeplechase semifinals, slated for June 11 at 8:38 p.m. Eastern on ESPN2.
Zealand set the tone for the Lady Flames' successful Saturday by successfully qualifying to Eugene in the women's 1,500 for the second year in a row. However, she required a time qualifier for the second consecutive season after the sophomore's 4:11.33 effort left her 0.72 seconds out of the fifth and final automatic qualifying position in her section.
After sweating out the second quarterfinal heat's results, Zealand heard her name officially announced as the fastest of two time qualifiers to Eugene. She joins Doan (2023 and 2024 steeplechase) as the only Liberty women's distance runners ever to make multiple NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships appearances. Additionally, this marks the first time Liberty will send multiple women's distance runners to the same NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
Zealand will attempt to earn All-America honors in a third different sport this year, following her 21st-place finish in cross country and her fifth-place showing in the indoor 3K final.
Zealand will race just before Schlenker on June 11 in Eugene, taking the track for the women's 1,500 semifinals at 8:21 p.m. on ESPN2.
Women's NCAA Division I National Qualifiers
Katrina Schlenker – Steeplechase – 9:50.85
Allie Zealand – 1,500 – 4:11.33
Updates to Liberty's All-Time Women's Top 10 List
No. 2 – Steeplechase – Katrina Schlenker – 9:50.85
Up Next
The 2026 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships will take place at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., June 10-13.
Two of Liberty's six qualifiers will compete on the meet's opening night (June 10), including Ben Shughart (men's javelin, 9:15 p.m. Eastern) and Markus White (men's long jump, 9:40 p.m. Eastern). Both events will have dedicated streams on ESPN+.
Liberty will take six athletes to the 2026 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships, June 10-13 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., doubling its total of NCAA national qualifiers from 2025. They include two men's throwers (Christian Hicks – discus and Ben Shughart – javelin), two men's horizontal jumpers (Gilles Ouedraogo – triple jump and Markus White – long jump) and two women's distance runners (Schlenker and Zealand).
Shortly after Zealand had officially punched her ticket late Saturday afternoon, Schlenker put an exclamation point on Liberty's stay in the Bluegrass State. Running in easily the fastest of the women's steeplechase's three quarterfinal heats, Schlenker steadily worked her way up through the field. She then unleashed a 72.57-second final lap (second fastest among the 48 competitors in Lexington) to place fifth in her section in 9:50.85, slashing 16 seconds off the senior's previous best.
That stood up as the second of three time qualifiers to Eugene and ranked as the ninth fastest time overall in Lexington on Saturday. Schlenker entered the day ranked No. 44 nationally for the women's steeplechase at 10:06.44 and ended it ranked No. 13 at 9:50.85.
Schlenker also scared Calli Doan's program record of 9:49.54, a time which earned 10th place in the 2024 NCAA national final. Schlenker's qualification gives Liberty a women's steeplechase national qualifier for the third time in four years, following Doan's appearances in 2023 and 2024.
Schlenker's NCAA national debut will come in the women's steeplechase semifinals, slated for June 11 at 8:38 p.m. Eastern on ESPN2.
Zealand set the tone for the Lady Flames' successful Saturday by successfully qualifying to Eugene in the women's 1,500 for the second year in a row. However, she required a time qualifier for the second consecutive season after the sophomore's 4:11.33 effort left her 0.72 seconds out of the fifth and final automatic qualifying position in her section.
After sweating out the second quarterfinal heat's results, Zealand heard her name officially announced as the fastest of two time qualifiers to Eugene. She joins Doan (2023 and 2024 steeplechase) as the only Liberty women's distance runners ever to make multiple NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships appearances. Additionally, this marks the first time Liberty will send multiple women's distance runners to the same NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
Zealand will attempt to earn All-America honors in a third different sport this year, following her 21st-place finish in cross country and her fifth-place showing in the indoor 3K final.
Zealand will race just before Schlenker on June 11 in Eugene, taking the track for the women's 1,500 semifinals at 8:21 p.m. on ESPN2.
Women's NCAA Division I National Qualifiers
Katrina Schlenker – Steeplechase – 9:50.85
Allie Zealand – 1,500 – 4:11.33
Updates to Liberty's All-Time Women's Top 10 List
No. 2 – Steeplechase – Katrina Schlenker – 9:50.85
Up Next
The 2026 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships will take place at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., June 10-13.
Two of Liberty's six qualifiers will compete on the meet's opening night (June 10), including Ben Shughart (men's javelin, 9:15 p.m. Eastern) and Markus White (men's long jump, 9:40 p.m. Eastern). Both events will have dedicated streams on ESPN+.
Players Mentioned
Throws
/ Track and Field
Jumps
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Javelin
/ Track and Field
Jumps
/ Track and Field
Mid-Distance
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