5 MSU track & field athletes to compete in NCAA Championships
BOZEMAN, Mont. — On Monday, five runners from Montana State track and field will be on the road to the biggest meet of the season.
The NCAA Championships will feature the best college talent in the nation, but the Bobcats are prepared.
“Preparation has been really solid, as so much of the work has been done in years, months and weeks before this,” said head coach Lyle Weese. “We are just putting the final touches on everything to make sure our athletes are feeling good heading into the NCAA Championships.”
Weese’s team heading to nationals will consist of runners Duncan Hamilton, Rob McManus, Ben Perrin, Camila Noe and Levi Taylor.
Each hopes to leave everything on the track in Austin.
“The main goal is first-team all-American, but this is also my first time going to the NCAAs in outdoor track, so I’m also going in, so I don’t have a ton of expectations, and I want to just go out race, have fun and be competitive,” Perrin said.
For some of the five, this is their first time on the big stage, but for Hamilton that’s far from the case. This is his ninth trip to an NCAA Championship, and his goal is a blue ribbon.
“From a personal standpoint, I want that title, for sure, as it is the last thing on my list to accomplish at the NCAAs,” Hamilton said. “I think if I can control my mindset going into it, then I should be able to do it. I race well when I am relaxed and when I am calm, so that will be my goal, just stay as relaxed. It is a big race, but I will be thinking of it like any other race.”
In steeplechase, Hamilton currently holds the fastest time in country of 8:16.23 and hopes to improve on that milestone next week.
With another outstanding performance, Hamilton is on his way to his lifetime goal of qualifying for the U.S. Olympic team that will compete in Paris in 2024.
