AUSTIN, Texas - Sophomore Isaiah Jewett led the UC Irvine men's track & field team on the first day of the NCAA West Preliminary Championships as he advanced to the 800-meter quarterfinals Thursday evening at Mike A. Myers Stadium.
Jewett was an automatic qualifier with a second-place showing in Heat 3. He raced out to the front of the pack and led all the way until the last push to the finish line. The Inglewood, Calif., native registered a time of 1:50.64, which was 13th in a field of 48. The top-three performers in each heat plus the next six best times move on to tomorrow's quarterfinal.
Senior Matt Seawright had a strong outing in the hammer where he finished fourth in Flight 2 and 18th out of 48 competitors overall. He came up just short of a bid to nationals with the top-12 earning a trip to Eugene, Ore., for the NCAA Championships in two weeks.
Seawright was consistent throughout the competition with all three of his attempts surpassing the 200-foot mark. He got off to a good start with a toss of 202-10, which put him in seventh after the first round of Flight 2. Seawright then moved up a couple spots on his second throw which was measured at 207-11. He was unable to improve on that distance in the third and final round, but held on to his fifth-place standing with 16 more individuals to throw in Flight 3. Seawright was eventually bumped out of a qualifying spot toward the end of the third flight's first round. The Long Beach, Calif., native, will have one more chance to make it to Eugene as he competes in the discus on Saturday.
Senior Brandon Howard ran his fourth-fastest 400m hurdle race of the season, clocking in at 52.84 seconds, but it was not enough to advance out of the first round. He finished sixth in his heat and 35th overall. Howard was the Big West runner-up in the 400H two weeks ago and ranks fifth in program history with a lifetime-best 51.61. He will be back in action on Saturday as part of the 4x400 relay.
Senior Lloyd Sicard will begin his Road to Eugene on Friday with the first round of the 110m hurdles at 3 p.m. (PDT).
Jewett then follows with his 800m quarterfinal at 4:45 p.m. (PDT). The top three in each quarterfinal heat plus the next three fastest times will qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
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