After a historic regular season for the Weber State Track and Field team came to an end, a few Wildcats went even further to make history.
The NCAA Track and Field Championships were hosted by the University of Oregon June 9-12 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.
Three Weber State athletes competed in the outdoor meet: Summer Allen, Kate Sorensen and Lexie Thompson.
Paul Pilkington, Wildcats head coach, described the three athletes as high-caliber and said, “We knew they would probably get to the National Championships. Everything has been geared towards getting them to peak at the right time.”
Allen headed into the championship ranked No. 6 in the nation after finishing the NCAA West Preliminary meet with a time of 9:47.38 and finishing fifth. Allen headed into the preliminary meet after winning the Big Sky Championship in the steeplechase.
Starting out her NCAA Championship debut, Allen ran a 9:37.48 time in her trial event on June 10 and then posted a time of 9:40.37 to finish eighth overall in the championship.
Allen’s trial event time marked a new Weber State and Big Sky Conference record.
Sorensen appeared at the NCAA Championships for the second time in her career. Sorensen competed in the 400-meter hurdles and finished 20th in the semifinals with a time of 59.42.
Sorensen closed out her Big Sky season-winning titles in both the 100- and 400-meter hurdles.
“I am just so happy to be able to run and have a season,” said Sorensen. “I feel so much more grateful that I am here and my season has gone as well as it has.”
Thompson also made her debut in the NCAA Championship and headed into the 10,000-meter championship ranked No. 11.
On June 10, Thompson made Weber State history by finishing 13th overall with a time of 33:06.95. Thompson earned Second Team All-America and is the first woman in WSU history to earn All-America honors in the event.
“This has always been the big goal,” said Thompson. “I have had little goals throughout the season to get to this point.”
In her post-season, Thompson also made history by setting stadium records in both the 5,000- and 10,000-meter events at the Big Sky Championships held at Weber State in May. She set a new school record for the 10k with a time of 32:49.62.
The end of the track and field season also marks the end of the 2021 spring season for Weber State Athletics.
