*Courtesy Southeastern Louisiana University Sports Information
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Southeastern Louisiana University track & field team ended its run in the 2023 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field East First Round on Saturday as Kristian Jackson and Katrine Olsen competed in the discus toss and high jump, respectively, at the University of North Florida’s Hodges Stadium.
Jackson started the day in the discus as part of the second of three flights of athletes to compete, looking to post a top-12 throw to advance her to the national final. When she stepped up, her first toss went 49.87 meters (163’7”), placing her in seventh overall as of that point. Having slipped a bit to ninth before the time for her second throw came, she could not advance her standing with a toss of 49.70 meters (163’1”).
When she stepped up for her third toss, she was 10th in the standings and needed a big throw to better her standing before the third set of athletes got their turn. However, it was not to be as she faulted on it, keeping her first throw as her best. When the second flight ended, she remained in 10th place, which would’ve gotten her through to the national final, however, the third flight of athletes proved overwhelming and Jackson quickly fell from the top-12, ending her season with a 24th place finish on the day.
As the discus competition was ending, the high jump competition was starting and Olsen took her run at a top-12 height and a spot in Austin. On the day’s starting height of 1.67 meters (5’5.75”), she would fault on her first attempt but clear the bar on her second, moving her on as only two of the 47 starting competitors failed to clear that height. Looking at the second height of 1.72 meters (5’7.75”), Olsen again faulted on her first attempt, but would also fault on her second, pushing her to the brink of elimination.
Olsen came through, clearing that bar on her third attempt and pushing her forward with 32 other athletes. The third height of the day was set at 1.77 meters (5’9.75”), representing the highest bar Olsen’s cleared this season. She could not replicate her results from both the Southland Conference Indoor and Outdoor Championships where she cleared that height, faulting on all three attempts and locking her into a 33rd place finish on the day and ending her season.
The Lions will now come together to cheer on Slavko Stevic as he represents Southeastern in the national final of the men’s high jump at the 2023 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field National Championships, which run June 7th-10th at the Mike A. Myers Stadium on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin in Austin, Texas. The men’s high jump championship round will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, June 9th.
