Trio of Bruin Men Earn NCAA Bids on Day 3 of West Regionals
May 30, 2025 | Track & Field
Day 1 Recap
Day 2 Recap
COLLEGE STATION, Texas โ A trio of Bruin men secured qualification to the 2025 Outdoor NCAA Championships on Friday during Day 3 of the 2025 NCAA West Region First Round at E.B. Cushing Stadium on the campus of Texas A&M.
The three advancing Bruins included Michael Pinckney (discus), Gabriel Clement II (400m), and Tamaal Myers II (400m hurdles).
That group joins the four Bruin women who already qualified earlier this week in Sydney Johnson (heptathlon, long jump), Jana van Schalkwyk (javelin), Ka'Leila Abrille (pole vault), and Katerina Adamiec (pole vault).
Pinckney was the first Bruin in action on Friday, and he clinched his nationals spot in dramatic fashion as he uncorked a throw of 60.88m (199-9) on his third and final attempt to jump from out of qualification all the way up to fourth place in the standings. That mark was his best in an NCAA-sanctioned event this year, and was the fourth time this season that he threw at least 60 meters.
The next qualification came from Clement, who secured an auto-bid by virtue of finishing third in his 400m heat with a time of 45.75, which matched his lifetime-best. He ended the competition in sixth place overall.
Finally, Myers had to endure a lengthy review process from the officials for the 400mH race, but he ultimately landed a top-12 spot after placing 11th with a time of 50.01. A personal-best time, Myers also made his debut on the UCLA outdoor all-time top-10 list at No. 9 in the 400mH.
Di'Niko Bates just missed out on a qualifying spot in the 110m hurdles, coming in 15th at 13.67, his second-best all-conditions time of the season. He was less than a tenth of a second behind the 12th-place finisher.
The Bruins also had competitors in the 800m (Bennett Booth-Genthe; 1:48.06; 16th) and 5000m (Michael Mireles; 13:54.45; 28th).
UCLA finishes up at the West Regionals on Saturday with the remainder of the women's field first rounds and track quarterfinals. The Bruins are slated to compete in the discus, high jump, 4x100 relay, 3000 steeplechase, 100m hurdles, 400m, 800m, 400m hurdles, 200m, and 4x400 relay.
Players Mentioned
