Sooners Advance Two to NCAA Finals

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Oklahoma's mission was accomplished on the first day of the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships in Birmingham, Ala. The first goal was to be competitive and the second was to get two more Sooners to compete Saturday.

Just short of matching her career-best time (23.14), junior Daye Shon Roberson recorded a 23.27 to advance to the 200-meter final on Saturday at 6 p.m. (CT). The ninth-ranked Sooner captain led for most of her heat but was edged in the final stretch by USC's Deanna Hill (23.14), who went into the competition ranked seventh.

Roberson and Jacob Burcham were the only OU entries competing in individual running events and both advanced to the finals.

Burcham went into the semifinal of the mile with a tactical mindset that proved effective enough to move forward after finishing third in his heat (the top four of each heat automatically qualified). The junior recorded a 4:09.46 time and stayed within the front three the entire race.

He came out strong, taking the lead headed into the second lap, but dropped a spot with four laps to go. The 10th-ranked Sooner kept pace with the top runners and took an opportunity to pass two entries heading around the last curve, before ultimately finishing third. The mile final is slated to begin at 4 p.m. Saturday.

Burcham runs a competitive and tactical mile to advance to the final on Saturday at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships in Birmingham, Ala.

"That's definitely a highlight," said head coach Jim VanHootegem. "The first goal is to get to the meet and the next is to get people to make it to finals. It's nice to have our first finalist in a few years at the indoors so great job to Daye Shon and Jacob.

"Daye Shon competed really well and I am proud of her," he continued. "Jacob did what he had to do to get to the final. They both set themselves up to do well and it's been great."

A risky but successful performance in the heptathlon high jump highlighted the day for sophomore Thomas Cheval. He finished ninth in his fourth and final event of the day to earn 813 points. He tallied 3,110 points in four events (the 60 meter, long jump and shot put) to rank 13th heading into Saturday. He trails the top spot by 417 points, but that deficit only made the Van Nuys, Calif., native compete harder.

Thomas Cheval Heptathlon Marks-Day 1^{_{(in order of events)}}
Event	Mark	Points	Place
60m	7.09	851	12th
Long Jump	22-9.75	802	11th
Shot Put	41-5.00	644	12th
High Jump	6-7.00	813	9th
Total Points	3110	Current Position	13th

While the crowd and OU coaches held their breath, Cheval sailed over the bar at 6-4.75, 6-6.00 and 6-7.00, his best of the day, on his third and final attempt. Each successful moment was met with a fist-pumping "yes" bellowed out in celebration.

"It wasn't pretty as far as misses go, but he always found a way to get over the bar," VanHootegem said. "He ended up having a really good day in the high jump. He didn't start off the first two events well, but I think he had some nerves. We just told him he had to get back to being himself because this is just another track meet. He settled down in the shot put."

The distance medley relay was the only entry to compete in a final during the first day for the Sooners. OU's foursome of Allen Eke, Trae Armstrong, Jacob Goldberg and Liam Meirow ran a 9:55.12 in the program's first DMR appearance at the championships since 2013 to finish 11th.

"I wish we would have done a little bit better, but we have four guys with NCAA experience now so that's a positive," the head coach said.

Action continues for OU on Saturday with the two running finals and a trio of Sooners in field events. Hayden McClain gets it going in the triple jump at 3:30 p.m. He ranks 15th with a career-best 52-8.75 and is coming off a Big 12 title in the event.

Freshman Mackenzie Shell will open pole vault competition at 4 p.m. and Jess Woodard will compete at 5 p.m. in the shot put. Shell ranks 17th (14-0.50) but advanced to the big meet after an entry that ranked ahead of her did not declare. Woodard is coming off a strong conference performance where she recorded two PRs and moved back into national qualifying range. She heads into action ranked 12th with a 55-7.00 mark.

Action continues Saturday at the Birmingham CrossPlex with broadcast beginning at 3:55 p.m. on ESPN3 and replayed Sunday at 6 p.m. on ESPN2/Watch ESPN. Live results are available at NCAA.com with a final recap after the meet on SoonerSports.com.

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Players Mentioned

Trae Armstrong

Jacob Burcham

Thomas Cheval

Thomas Cheval

Allen Eke

Jacob Goldberg

Hayden McClain

Liam Meirow

Daye Shon Roberson

Kenzie Shell

Kenzie Shell

Jess Woodard

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