CEDAR CITY, Utah - This week four Thunderbirds will be competing in Lawrence, Kansas at The NCAA West Preliminary at Rock Chalk Park with hopes of moving on to the National Championships.
Jayson Kovar will be competing in the discus, Hayden Hawks will be running the 10K, George Espino will be running in the 800-meter, and Devon Montgomery will be competing in both the 110-meter hurdles and the 400-meter hurdles. The Thunderbirds will be going against the top competition in the western United States.
The other half of the country will be competing in Florida at the NCAA East Preliminary. The top-12 competitors from both Preliminary Rounds will move on to Eugene, Oregon for the 2016 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
Kovar will enter the Regional as the top ranked Thunderbird, as he is fifth in the West Region in the discus. His coach and father Jay Kovar, and his sister Kayla Kovar, are both staples in the SUU track and field family, and he said they have helped him out a lot.
“I've just learned how to compete well,” he said. “Trying to stay like I'm practicing when I go to a competition and just do what I always done.”
Kovar placed first in the discus at the Big Sky Conference Championships.
The freshman Montgomery said he honestly didn't expect to have such a big impact so early.
“I didn't expect to be up so high in the conference with the juniors and seniors, but it's just something that clicked in the middle of the season, and I just started running faster,” he said.
Devon won the 400-meter hurdles at the Big Sky Championships and placed second in the 110-meter hurdles.
Espino said he's hoping the hard work he's been putting in pays off in Kansas.
“I've been putting in a lot of miles lately and just really focusing on this coming weekend,” he said. “Hopefully I can get a big PR and make it to nationals.”
Espino is coming off a Big Sky Championship in the 800-meter after setting a school and arena record in Greeley.
For Hawks, he is halfway to his goal after claiming an all-american honor during the cross country season, with one in track and field still up for grabs.
“I accomplished that cross one which give me a lot confidence heading into track season,” he said. “It would be awesome. That's been my goal this whole season. I did enough to qualify and now I know I can go out there and get that all-american spot. That's the ultimate goal.”
Hawks finished runner-up in the 10K at the Big Sky Conference Championships.
The meet in Lawrence will run from May 26-28. Live results and video streams can be found on KUAthletics.com
Updates can be followed on the Southern Utah Track and XC Facebook page.
