Bradley University Athletics

Five Braves Earn NCAA Regional Invitation

Missouri Valley Conference

Men's Track and Field 5/18/2017 2:59:00 PM

Five members of the Bradley track teams earned a spot at the 2017 NCAA West Regional, announced on Thursday.

Senior Patrick Campbell, juniors Daniel Gagne and Michael Ward and freshman Jake Hoffert will represent the BU men's team, while senior Rachel Sudbury is set to feature for the women's squad.

Ward earned a bid to the NCAA Preliminaries for the third-straight season, qualifying for the 1,500m and 5,000m this year. The junior earned his bid with a time of 3:46.36 in the 1,500m run at the Bryan Clay Invitational, while posting a mark of 14:04.35 at the Drake Relays. Ward also qualified for both events in each of his first two seasons on The Hilltop. As a freshman, he placed 12th in his heat in the 1,500m before missing the 5,000m run due to injury. He then elected to only run the 5,000m last season and placed 26th overall of 48 qualifiers.

An All-MVC honoree in the 1,500m run, Gagne earned his first career invitation to the regional meet. The junior established the program's record in the event at the Bryan Clay Invitational, posting a time of 3:43.08, before finishing as runner up last weekend to earn his first career individual all-conference accolades. Gagne's time is the top qualifying rank of any of the Braves, placing 20th in the west region.

Both Campbell and Hoffert qualified for the 10,000m run, earning their first invitations to the preliminaries. Campbell set the school record in the event at the Mt. SAC Relays with a mark of 29:26.07, while Hoffert earned his spot with a time of 29:35.06 at the same event – the second-best performance in the program's record book. Last week, Campbell earned All-MVC honors in the 10,000m run, placing third overall at the conference championship.

Sudbury will also run in the NCAA Preliminaries for the first time in her collegiate career. The senior qualified for the 1,500m with a time of 4:26.09 at the Bryan Clay Invitational – the fifth-fastest time in BU history.

Action at the NCAA West Preliminary begins on Thursday, May 25 and the three-day meet will take place in Austin, Texas.

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