Van Beek, Teschuk Earn NCAA Championships Bids in Steeplechase

Friday, May 29

Austin, Texas

12 p.m.

North Dakota State Athletics

NCAA West Preliminary Rounds - Day Two

Van Beek, Teschuk Earn NCAA Championships Bids in Steeplechase

5/29/2015 10:01:00 PM | Women's Track and Field

NCAA Preliminary Rounds
Schedule of Events | Live Results
Meet Information | NDSU Track & Field on Twitter

AUSTIN, Texas – Over the last several seasons, a pair of distance runners on the North Dakota State women's track & field team have done their best to elevate the Bison distance program on the national scene. On Friday night at the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds, that pair took another collective step in the right direction.

Senior Maddie Van Beek and junior Erin Teschuk both earned bids to the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in the 3,000m steeplechase, ensuring themselves a spot among the nation's final 24 athletes in the event.

Van Beek (Perham, Minn.) took to the track first and left no doubt of her intentions when she unleashed a furious kick with 500 meters remaining. She bolted from fifth to third place along the home straightaway and maintained her position over the final lap, earning an automatic qualifying spot at the national meet.

Van Beek finished in 9:57.60 – the third-fastest qualifying time in the West Region and a lifetime-best performance by more than 17 seconds.

Teschuk (Winnipeg, Manitoba) appeared content to cruise to her qualifying spot, finishing second in her heat and seventh overall in 10:01.33. She owns the nation's fourth-fastest time this season in the event at 9:43.83.

Van Beek and Teschuk will be the first pair of Bison to compete in the same event at the NCAA Championships since All-Americans Whitney Carlson and Heather Zander in the heptathlon in 2010. The NCAA Championships will be held in Eugene, Ore., on June 10-13.

The Bison had three women compete in the national quarterfinals of the 400m hurdles, but none could crack the top 12 spots on Friday evening to earn a bid to the NCAA Championships in Oregon. Sophomore Morgan Milbrath led the group, placing 15th in 59.45. Junior Melissa Kitching took 16th in 59.68, and senior Ashley Heinze was 22nd in 1:00.88.

Milbrath, a Minot, N.D., native, entered the meet ranked 23rd and outperformed that pre-meet ranking by eight places.

Sophomore Katelyn Weimerskirch registered a strong performance in the discus, placing 21st after entering the meet ranked 41st in the West Region. She posted a season-best mark of 170-11 (52.10m) that came within two feet of her own school record in the event. Among her three attempts, Weimerskirch recorded the third- and fourth-best throws of her career.

Bison sophomore Lexy Boschee cleared 5-06.00 (1.68m) in the high jump in her NCAA Prelims debut.

The NDSU women have three events remaining in Austin on Saturday. Sierra Rosenau and Alyssa Olin will compete in the javelin at 5 p.m., Emily Lesser and Courtney Pasiowitz will throw the shot put at 6 p.m., and the 4x400m relay will run at 9:25 p.m.