Day two of the Outdoor NCAA Track & Field Championships saw many Gophers to career-bests, including an All-America honor for junior Aaron Studt.
Studt was awarded his first outdoor All-America honor after finishing fifth in the shot put final, throwing a distance of 63-2 ¾. The throw was a career-high for Studt, improving his No. 3 rank in school history and making him a two-time All-American in the event.
Also in second day action, junior R.J. McGinnis finished out the decathlon in 17th place with 7,294 points. After climbing up to seventh place earlier in the day, his 133-7 throw in the javelin dropped him out of All-America contention.
Day two for senior Liz Roehrig started with the 100-meter hurdles, the first event of the heptathlon. She sat in fourth place after the first two events and climbed to second by the end of the first day, scoring 3,651 points. This was her best first-day score of her career. She currently trails Nia Ali of USC by 12 points.
In the 800 meters semifinals, Heather Dorniden ran a season-best of 2:03.77. Finishing fourth in her heat, Dorniden will advance to finals.
Elizabeth Yetzer and Ben Blankenship both made a strong first appearance at the NCAA Championships in the 1,500 meters. Yetzer shaved more than six seconds off her career-best, clocking a time of 4:18.11. Blankenship ran a time of 3:42.47, finishing fifth in the heat and 14th overall in the qualifying round. The time was a career-best for Blankenship and also the fifth-best time in school history.
