Senior Avery Ewing qualifies for finals of the 800 with a 2:13.58 effort in prelims on Day 2 of NCAA III Outdoor Track & Field Championships
By Tim Glon
| NCAA III Outdoor Track & Field Championships page |
GENEVA — Senior Avery Ewing (Kokomo, Ind./Eastern) ran a 2:13.58 in the prelims of the 800-meter dash Friday on Day 2 of the 2019 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships at the SPIRE Institute.
She finished third of eight runners in her heat, was 10th of 22 runners overall and was just .11 of a second off her personal best time of 2:13.47.
As the top two finishers from each of the three heats plus the next three best times were scheduled to advance to the finals, Ewing was initially one spot shy of qualifying for the finals.
She was at the back of the pack after the first lap but passed five runners in the final 400 meters despite getting bumped out two lanes entering the final straightaway.
The Ohio Northern coaching staff protested the race as Ewing was impeded and was forced out into lane four down the stretch.
That protest was upheld and Ewing was allowed into the finals along with another runner that was also impeded, resulting in an 11-woman final on Saturday at 1:50 p.m.
She had originally missed qualifying for the finals by just .54 of a second.
"What a great race Avery ran today," ONU head coach Jason Maus said. "Just a terrific effort. The last two races she broke 2:14 for the first two times in her career. She had a head of steam coming around the final turn and looked like she was going to finish in the top two and qualify for the finals. Fortunately the NCAA upheld our appeal and she will get a chance to run on Saturday."
The top eight in each event earn All-America honors.
On the men's side, senior two-time All-American Ian McVey (Stow/Stow-Munroe Falls) will compete in the 5,000-meter run on Saturday at 3:25 p.m.
On Thursday, junior two-time All-American Maggie Krause (Chagrin Falls/Kenston) competed in the women's pole vault. She missed on her three attempts at the opening height of 3.50 meters and did not place in the event.
