27 Wildcats and Three Relay Teams Qualify for NCAA West Preliminary

27 Wildcats and Three Relay Teams Qualify for NCAA West Preliminary

May 21, 2026 | Track & Field

K-State's competitors include 15 returners to the first round and eight freshmen

MANHATTAN, Kan. – The K-State track and field teams will be represented at the NCAA Championship West Preliminary with 27 Wildcats, and three relay teams, on May 27-30 in Fayetteville, Ark., at John McDonnell Track. 14 men and 13 women will compete individually, with 15 Cats returning to the first round and eight freshmen continuing their first outdoor postseason.

The first rounds, the West hosted by Arkansas, and the East in Lexington, Kentucky, feature the top 48 individuals in each event in each region, and 24 relay teams, as they vie for a top 12 spot to advance to the 24-contender NCAA Championship on June 10-13 in Eugene, Ore., at Hayward Field.

Freshman Dorian Charles and senior Emil Uhlin automatically qualified for the men's decathlon to take place on June 10-11. Uhlin had a season high performance of 7,773 points at the David Noble Relays (March 26-27) while Charles finished runner-up in the Big 12 Championship (May 14-16) with 7,748 points, a new personal best.

All three outdoor Big 12 Champions will continue to make their mark in the postseason, Tah Chikomba in the men's long jump, Selva Prabhu in the men's triple jump and Vanessa Mercera in the women's 400-meter hurdles.

Chikomba broke the Big 12, Drachman Stadium facility and K-State school records with his winning jump of 8.27m (27' 1.75"). He leads the west region with a jump over seven inches further than the next competitor at 8.08m. Prabhu leaped to the crown with a distance of 17.19m (56' 4.75"), a wind aide of 4.6, negating it from becoming a Big 12 and school record as well. Mercera secured the 400 hurdles title in 55.39 seconds, collecting her second K-State school record of the outdoor season.

Other women set to compete in the first round include four sprinters, Desirae Riehle in the 400 meters and Reese Brownlee, Jourdin Edwards and Reese Kasper in the 400-meter hurdles.

Nine women will face off in the jumps events, Zoey Brinker in the high jump, Chisom Nwafor and Maud Zeffou-Poaty in the long jump and Taylor Mayo, Destini Smith, Tesia Thomas and Daniela Wamokpego in the triple jump. One Wildcat, Aaliyah Lindsay, is set for both the long and triple jumps, marking a consecutive season a Cat has done so after Shalom Olotu's success in 2025.

Three sprinters on the men's side will compete, Thomas Canivet in the 400-meter hurdles and Bongumusa Nkosi and Tavon Underwood in the 400 meters.

The men's side will have six more jumpers beside Chikomba and Prabhu, Alan Hanna in the high jump, Croix DaCunha and Uroy Ryan in the long jump and three more in the triple jump, Aaron Antoine, Jhavor Bennett and Apalos Edwards.

The men's team will also have three Wildcats in the throws, Riley Marx in the javelin, Ricardo Hayles in the discus throw and Gary Moore Jr. in both the discus and hammer throws for a consecutive season.

K-State will also have teams in three relays, the women's 4x400 and the men's 4x100 and 4x400 relay. The fastest women's relay this season was 3:32.77 at the Drake Relays (April 23-25) as Riehle, Ariana Jackson, Anastasiia Kretova and Mercera ran the no. 3 best K-State outdoor time.

In both the men's relays, the teams ran the no. 3 fastest times in K-State history. The best 4x100 relay this season was 39.68 seconds at the Oregon Team Invitational (April 17-18) with Jack Guthridge, DaCunha, Nen Matlock and Chikomba. During the conference championship, the men's 4x400 finished 5^th in 3:04.20, with Nkosi, Cyrus Ways, Heath Grant and Underwood.

-- k-statesports.com --

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