Pinkelman and Saina Punch NCAA Tickets

NORMAN, Okla. ? Iowa State freshman Betsy Saina's second-place finish in the 5,000-meter run and Cyclone Luke Pinkelman's fifth-place finish in the shot put qualified the ISU pair for the NCAA national meet next month, highlighting the first day of competition for the Iowa State track and field team Friday at the NCAA Midwest Regional Championships.

Saina's second-place time of 16:15.74 in the 5,000-meter run was a personal best, bettering her previous personal best by 23 seconds. The freshman's top-five finish qualifies her for the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships June 10-13 in Fayetteville, Ark.

2009 NCAA Midwest Regional
Day One Results	_

“(Betsy) had a great race tonight,” Iowa State head coach Corey Ihmels said. “We are obviously excited about her getting to nationals, and having such a great race. She didn't back down from the national stage today and she is looking forward to racing in a couple weeks.”

Pinkelman, a sophomore, finished fifth in the men's shot put (59-1 ?), qualifying him for the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Pinkelman's mark was two feet further than his previous personal-best toss. The Cozad, Neb. native finished sixth in the shot put at the Big 12 Outdoor Track and Field Championships (56-11 ?) just two weeks ago.

“Luke got the day started right for us,” Ihmels said. “Luke has struggled a little bit (in the outdoor season), but he had three great throws tonight in the finals and gets a trip to nationals, obviously a great feat. I'm just excited that he's going to have another chance to have some more good throws (at the NCAA national meet).”

Advancing to Saturday's finals were Iowa State junior Jenna Caffrey, who finished sixth in her preliminary of the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 13.65 seconds and Cyclone freshman Kianna Elahi, who placed finished seventh in her heat of the 400-meter hurdles (59.63) Friday. Caffrey will compete in the finals of the 100-meter hurdles Saturday at 5:45 p.m., while Elahi will compete in the finals of the 400-meter hurdles at 6:40 p.m.

Competition will resume Saturday at 11 a.m. with senior Zac Brouillette competing in the hammer throw. Results will be posted on cyclones.com.

Men:

Shot Put: 1) Harrison Benjamin, Texas Tech, 64-3 ?; 5) Luke Pinkelman, Iowa State, 59-1 ?.

Women:

5,000-meter run: 1) Kellyn Johnson, Wichita State, 16:13.55; 2) Betsy Saina, Iowa State, 16:15.74.

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Players Mentioned

Zac Brouillette

Zac Brouillette

Jenna Caffrey

Jenna Caffrey

Kianna Elahi

Luke Pinkelman

Luke Pinkelman

Betsy Saina

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