Teschuk, Van Beek Earn Spots in NCAA Steeplechase Final

Thursday, June 11

Eugene, Ore.

6:30 p.m.

North Dakota State Athletics

NCAA Outdoor Championships

Photo by: Larry Lawson

Teschuk, Van Beek Earn Spots in NCAA Steeplechase Final

6/11/2015 10:22:00 PM | Women's Track and Field

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EUGENE, Ore. – North Dakota State runners Erin Teschuk and Maddie Van Beek both claimed spots in the national final of the 3,000m steeplechase on Thursday evening at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships held at historic Hayward Field.

The pair will run in the 12-woman final on Saturday at 4:27 p.m. (CT) / 2:27 p.m. (PT) on ESPN2.

Teschuk, a junior from Winnipeg, Manitoba, kicked to the front with just under 200 meters remaining to win her semifinal heat in a time of 9:53.93 and automatically advance to the final. Van Beek, a senior from Perham, Minn., clocked 9:58.97 for fourth place in her heat, earning an automatic bid to Saturday.

Teschuk's time was the fastest across both semifinal heats.

"Today went about as well as I could imagine," said NDSU distance coach Andrew Carlson. "They both looked like they were really under control, which is huge in a prelim race. Going into the final, I think they're going to have all their facilities about them, and just to be in that field is great, but I know they want more now."

Both runners' semifinal times stand as the second-fastest of their respective careers. Teschuk entered the meet ranked fourth in the nation this season, while Van Beek was No. 16 on the national list.

Teschuk, appearing in the NCAA Championships for the third time this school year, was pleased with her semifinal run.

"It went pretty much as planned," Teschuk said. "I kind of knew going into it that there were about five of us who were going to be in that top group, so I just wanted to position myself. I wanted to make sure I finished somewhere in the front and didn't take any chances."

"The last couple races, I didn't feel as good or have the finishes that I wanted, so I was happy I had a stronger finish at the end of this race," said Teschuk.

Because the two have been split into different heats or different events quite often over the last couple years, they haven't raced together too frequently. Van Beek is relishing the opportunity to run one last college race with her teammate in the NCAA finals.

"We train together every day, so it's fun to know that finally we're both going to be in the same race," said Van Beek. "It was fine that we were in separate heats today. We could do our own thing, but now that it comes down to it, we get to support each other in the same race."

The top eight finishers on Saturday will earn first-team All-America distinction.

NDSU junior Sierra Rosenau finished 18th in the javelin with a throw of 154-11 (47.22m), earning honorable mention All-America honors. The Carrington, N.D., native becomes the first Bison woman to ever earn All-America status in a throwing event at the Division I level.