VERMILLION, S.D.—South Dakota track and field has qualified 21 entries to the NCAA West Preliminary held in Sacramento, California, starting next Wednesday. A total of 16 individuals and one relay account for the 21 entries.
 
This marks the sixth-straight meet the Coyotes have qualified 19 or more entries to the NCAA West Preliminary.
 
Also of note is that 15 of the 21 entries are on the women's side. The Coyote women are ranked No. 30 nationally in the latest rankings by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. South Dakota boasts the most entries on the women's side and overall in the Summit League.
 
Among the athletes moving on to the next round are seven pole vaulters, four high jumpers, three sprinters, two throwers and the women's 4x100 relay. The Coyotes have five athletes projected in the top-12 of the region.
 
South Dakota's No. 1 women's pole vault squad tied Arkansas for the most qualifiers to the NCAA Preliminary round with five. Sophomore Marleen Mülla and fourth-year redshirt-sophomore Gen Hirata enter with the third- and fourth-best heights, respectively. Mülla has a mark of 14-8 ¾ (4.49m) and Hirata cleared 14-7 ¼ (4.45m) this spring. The duo were first-team All-Americans indoors and are each making their second appearance at the NCAA West Preliminary. Mülla reached the 2022 NCAA Championships and Hirata, who redshirted last spring, made the 2021 NCAA Championships. Junior Cassidy Mooneyhan, who qualified for the NCAA Indoor Championships, owns the 15th-best mark with a height of 13-11 ¼. She's making her second appearance at the meet. Junior Jaidyn Garrett has the 18th-best height in the field at 13-9 (4.19m). She's making her third appearance at the West and advanced to the NCAA Championships a year ago. Fifth-year senior Deidra Marrison is making her fourth appearance at the preliminaries, entering in 46th position at 13-3 (4.04m).
 
Sophomore Danii Anglin, a two-time All-American, enters the NCAA West Preliminary with the third-best height in the women's high jump. She cleared a personal best 6-1 ¼ (1.86m) to win the Summit League Championships last week. This is her second appearance at the preliminary meet, where she advanced to nationals a year ago.
 
Junior Jacy Pulse returns to the NCAA West Preliminary in the 400-meter hurdles for her second appearance. She owns the 11th-fastest time in the field with a school record clocking of 56.79 seconds from the Drake Relays.
 
Fourth-year junior Marshall Faurot makes his third appearance at the NCAA Preliminary round. He enters with the 11th-best mark in the men's pole vault after clearing a personal best of 18-0 ½ (5.50m) to win the Summit Championships. He previously advanced to the national meet in 2021. Junior Eerik Haamer joins him in the field at 30th with a season-best of 17-2 ¼ (5.24m). This is Haamer's third appearance, having advanced to the national meet a year ago.
 
Continuing a standout spring, junior Erin Kinney qualifies for the NCAA West Preliminary in an open event for the first time. She'll race in the 100 meters, 200 meters and the 4x100-meter relay next weekend. She owns the 19th-best mark in the 100 meters in 11.28 seconds and the 30th-best mark in the 200 meters in 23.35 seconds.
 
The women's 4x100-meter relay of sophomore Sammy Neil, Pulse, sophomore Anna Robinson and Kinney advances to the NCAA West Preliminary in 21st with a time of 44.63 seconds. This marks the Coyotes' second overall appearance in the women's 4x100 relay.
 
Fourth-year junior Hugo Morvan punched his ticket to the NCAA West Preliminary last weekend at the Summit meet by clocking a personal best 13.79 seconds in the 110-meter hurdles. He sits 28th in the field and will make his second appearance at the meet.
 
Three men's high jumpers advanced to the NCAA West Preliminary, which is tied for the second-most qualifiers by a program. The men's high jump squad ranks fifth in the nation by USTFCCCA. Fifth-year senior Jack Durst is making his fourth appearance, leading a pair of first-timers in freshman Landon Olson and Dakota State transfer Joe Lynch. Durst has the 29th-best mark in the field at 6-11 ½ (2.12m). Olson is 32nd in the field at 6-11 (2.11m) and Lynch is 43rd at 6-10 ¾ (2.10m).
 
The pair of fourth-year juniors Lydia Knapp and Meredith Clark account for five entries in the women's throwing events. Knapp is making her third appearance in the hammer throw. She has the 18th-best mark at 206-4 (62.90m). She's also competing in the discus, making her second appearance in that event. She's 45th in the field with a throw of 170-10 (52.06m). Clark becomes the first Coyote athlete to compete in the NCAA West Preliminary in three open events. She sits 42nd in the hammer throw (192-4 (58.62m)), 44th in the shot put (52-0 (15.85m)) and 48th in the discus (169-0 (51.51m)).
 
The NCAA West Preliminaries are scheduled for May 24-27 in Sacramento, California.