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Jane Hedengren and Taylor Lovell headline 10 more national qualifiers for BYU on prelims’ final day

BYU’s incomparable Jane Hedengren stayed on pace to compete for national championships in two distance running events on Saturday night as the NCAA Division I Track & Field West Preliminaries wrapped up in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Having won the 10,000 meters on Thursday night to qualify for the finals of that event in Eugene, Oregon, in two weeks, Hedengren was back on the track at John McDonnell Field Saturday in the 5,000 meters. The freshman from Provo’s Timpview High easily won her heat with a time of 15 minutes, 17.93 seconds, but finished third overall as Iowa State’s Betty Kipkore and New Mexico’s Pamela Kosgei posted better times in the second heat.

Kipkore’s time of 15:14.28 broke the facility record of 15:17.79, set by Alabama’s Mercy Chelangat in 2021.

The 2026 national finals run from June 10-13 at Hayward Field in Eugene, the 17th time the national championships will have been held in Oregon.

Hedengren will be joined in Eugene by several other outstanding female athletes from BYU, including steeplechasers Taylor Lovell and Raygan Dimond, mid-distance runners Carlee Hansen, Tessa Buswell, Kristie Solomon and Carmen Alder, sprinter Paje Rasmussen and discus thrower Kaiah Fisher.

Utah’s Mackenzie Rogers (steeplechase) and Chelsea Amoah (200 meters) also qualified for nationals on Saturday.

After the 5,000 meter run concluded Saturday, the meet was delayed due to lightning in the area and the women’s 4x400 relay — which included a team from BYU — had not been contested as of 9 p.m. MT.

BYU’s Taylor Rohatinsky (16th) and Jenna Hutchins (26th) also ran in the 5,000 meters Saturday, but did not qualify for nationals.

By far, the state of Utah’s best showing was in the 3,000 meter steeplechase, as BYU’s Taylor Lovell placed first with a time of 9:38.36. Fellow BYU junior Raygan Dimond was fourth at 10:03.02 and will also advance.

Utah’s Rogers also moves on to nationals, after placing 10th with a time of 10:08.03.

Utah State’s Shelby Jensen (13th), Utah’s Sona Kourilova (14th) and BYU’s Addie Meldrum (15th) and River White (26th) also showed well in the national quarterfinals of the steeplechase, but will not advance.

In the 1,500 meters, BYU seniors Hansen and Alder both qualified in Arkansas, with Hansen placing eighth and Alder placing ninth. Hansen’s time was 4:09.46 and Alder’s time was 4:09.77.

BYU freshman Zariel Macchia placed 24th (4:31.06) and did not advance.

BYU’s Paje Rasmussen, who prepped at Draper’s Corner Canyon High School, qualified in both the 100 and 200. She placed 12th in the 100 with a time of 11.13 seconds. She played 12th in the 200 with a time of 22.86 seconds.

Utah’s Amoah was 11th in the 200 meters to advance, clocking in at 22.85 seconds.

In the women’s discus, BYU’s Fisher, a graduate transfer from Stanford, punched her ticket to nationals with an 11th-place finish in Arkansas. Fisher’s throw of 54.67 meters came close to her season-best, a 55.09 throw in the Weber State Spring Classic.

In the women’s 800 meters, BYU’s Buswell and Solomon both qualified for the national semifinals, as Buswell placed 10th (2:02.02) and Solomon placed 12th (2:02.21) in Arkansas.

In the 100 meter hurdles, BYU senior Kali McEuen just missed qualifying for nationals, placing 13th with a time of 13.069 seconds. The 12th-place finisher clocked in at 13.065 seconds to edge McEuen’s time.

McEuen placed 15th in the 400 meter hurdles.

Utah’s 4x100 relay team, perhaps the best in school history, placed 13th with a time of 44.68 and did not advance, nor did BYU’s 4x100 relay team, which clocked in at 20th place (45.58).

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