Masters Celebrates by Advancing to Final

EUGENE, Ore. - Riley Masters, who helped lead the OU distance efforts in 2012 and 2013, celebrated Independence Day by earning a spot in the 5,000-meter final at the U.S. Olympic Trials on historic Hayward Field.

Masters, who runs for BROOKS Beasts TC, ran a 13:49.75 to finish seventh in his heat and earn the first qualifying spot determined by time. He will run in the 5,000-meter final on Saturday at 5:20 p.m. (PDT). Masters made his move on the final lap, running his fastest 400 of the day to move from 10^theto seventh.

The results for two other entries with OU ties, Abbabiya Simbassa and senior-to-be Dylan Blankenbaker, weren't as successful. Simbassa recorded a 13:53.56 to finish 19th overall, 11th in his section. Simbassa, who runs for Team USA Minnesota, maintained his spot in eighth/ninth place, until the final lap. Blankenbaker ran a 9:19.40 to finish 11th in his section, 23rd overall. Blankenbaker was third in his heat after the first lap, then dropped to eighth and couldn't come back from that drop.

Masters was a second-team All-American in the 1,500 in 2013 and also ran on the indoor distance medley relay that earned All-America honors in 2012. Masters won the Big 12 title in 2012 in the 1,500 and is the school record holder in the 1500-meter run.

Simbassa scored in the 5,000- and 10,000-meter run in the 2015 Big 12 Outdoor and scored in the 3,000- and the 5,000-meter run in the indoor Big 12 in 2014 and 2015. Simbassa is ranked second on the all-time list in the 10,000.

Abbabiya Simbassa Blankenbaker, the school record holder in the steeplechase with an 8:34.69, has scored the last three years in the Big 12 in the race, including a runner-up finish in May of this year. He finished fourth in the event during the 2016 NCAA Championships in June, earning first team All-America honors.

The Trials will take a day off on Tuesday and return to action on Wednesday. Recent OU graduate Julia Reedy is scheduled to compete in the hammer when action resumes at 1 p.m. The finals will be held at 3 p.m. on Wednesday.

Reedy is a two-time first-team All-American in the hammer, earning both awards on Hayward Field in 2015 and 2016. She holds the OU school record with a 219-2.00 and has scored in the event the last two years in the Big 12 Outdoor Championship. She also has scored in the Big 12 Indoor in the weight throw the last three years.

She finished fourth in the hammer at the 2016 NCAA Outdoor after finishing third in the NCAA West prelims. She earned a third-place finish in the hammer at the Big 12 Outdoor. Her season-opening competition at the Baldy Castillo Invitational produced the school record throw of 219-2.00. She also added the hammer title at the Texas Relays

Julia Reedy

In 2015, she placed fifth in the hammer in the NCAA Championships with a then-program and career-best mark of 211-4.00. She finished ninth in the West prelims to advance to Eugene after taking third at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship.

The Trials continue through July 10. Live results, start lists and broadcast schedules are available on the USATF website and daily recaps will follow on SoonerSports.com.