Marshall Advances to NCAA Quarterfinals

SACRAMENTO – Abilene Christian's Jack Marshall moved on to the quarterfinal round of the men's 200 meters at the NCAA West First Round on Wednesday.
 
Marshall finished in the sixth of six time qualifier slots at 20.94 seconds to advance to Friday's quarterfinals. He will need to be in the top 12 on Friday to advance to the final site in Austin next month.
 
Marshall placed fourth in the third heat. The top three from each of the six heats qualified for the quarterfinals automatically and the top six times from outside of those 18 automatic qualifiers also advanced.
 
After his heat, Marshall occupied the fifth spot and was on the bubble heading into the final heat. His time was .01 seconds faster than Chris Borzer of USC.
 
"He was right on the cusp," ACU Head Coach Jerrod Cook said of the waiting game. "I'm so proud of Jack and excited to see what's next. He has the ability to continue. It's really exciting to see him come here and advance."
 
Marshall was the only sprinter in the 200 from the Western Athletic Conference to move forward.
 
The day was the end of the line, however, for Jamal January in the 110 hurdles and Jared Williams in the 400 meters.
 
January hit an early hurdle but finished strong but his 14.34 landed him in 43^rd place.
 
"That was tough for Jamal," Cook said. "When you clip a hurdle in that event it can ruin you, but Jamal kept fighting for every one-hundredth of a second trying to get back in it. You just hate to see it end. You always want your athletes to go out on their best race no matter what level you're at. I'm so proud Jamal has been with us all this time."
 
Williams placed 39^th in the 400 meters at 46.86, finishing his career in the regional.
 
"Jared really transformed himself this year," said Cook. "He was leaner and he improved his technique. I think he had his third-best time tonight and he beat the conference champion by a second. I think he gave us everything he had to give."
 
The women take the stage on Wednesday with Zoe Burleson in the shot put and Payton Kirk in the long jump. Both are slated for 8 p.m., Central time.