Bradley University Athletics

Wilma Nielsen Qualifies for NCAA Championship!

Results

Track & Field 5/29/2021 6:59:00 PM

Freshman Wilma Nielsen of the Bradley track and field team is headed to the NCAA Championship as the rookie earned a bid in the 800m run on Saturday at the NCAA West Preliminary.

Nielsen ran the 800m quarterfinals at Texas A&M in 2:05.16 to finish 11th overall and earn one of 12 bids out of the region. One of just three freshmen to qualify out of the West, the rookie set the BU record with her time, surpassing the previous standard of 2:06.17 by more than a second. Her mark is also the fastest by a Valley runner since 2017.

Nielsen is the first BU woman to earn a bid to the NCAA Championship rounds in Oregon since Kristen Busch in 2016 – who qualified in the 10,000m – and the first-ever Bradley freshman to reach the final stages.

Classmate Tiana LoStracco also participated in the 800m quarterfinals on Saturday, matching the previous Bradley record with a PR time of 2:06.17 to place 17th overall and fifth among freshmen in the West.

Senior Evan Mitchell and freshman Sophia McDonnell ran the 3,000m steeplechase to open the action Saturday for BU. Mitchell clocked a time of 9:13.54 to place 36th overall in the men's event, while McDonnell was 40th overall and ninth among rookies in the women's event, crossing the finish line in 10:43.51.

Nielsen is set to take on the NCAA Championship in two weeks in Eugene, Oregon. The semifinals are set for Thursday, June 10 at 7:14 p.m. CT, while the finals are scheduled for Saturday, June 12 at 6:14 p.m. CT.

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