WVU's Mikenna Vanderheyden achieves "five-year dream" as she advances to NCAA Track and Field Championship
By Joseph Smith
Each summer, a rainbow of track and field jerseys dot the landscape at the NCAA Division 1 Track and Field Championships as some of the brightest young athletes across the globe compete in one of the most elite gatherings in the sport. Once again in 2024, amongst those colors will be the old gold and blue of the West Virginia Mountaineers.
WVU redshirt senior Mikenna Vanderheyden punched her ticket to the 2024 NCAA Track and Field Championship with a personal best performance in the 3,000-meter steeplechase on Saturday night at the NCAA East Preliminary.
Vanderheyden crossed the line in 10 minutes, 00.84 seconds in the second heat of the event, good enough for a second-place finish in her heat and a ninth-place finish amongst all competitors. Her finish within her heat was good enough for an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship race, and her mark bested her previous best by nearly two seconds. She is third-overall in program history with the time.
"Mikenna took control and willed her way to Eugene, living out a five-year dream," said WVU head coach Sean Cleary.
The 2024 NCAA Championship will take place from June 5th-June 8th at the historic Hayward Field in Oregon, with the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase semifinal set for Thursday, June 6th and and the final set for Saturday, June 8th. Vanderheyden enters with one of the top-20 times in the Division 1 in the event.