AUSTIN — Whitney Flannel finished in an eighth-place tie in the high jump on Friday night to advance to the national semifinals and that performance highlighted the UTSA women's track & field team's second day of action at this weekend's NCAA Championships Preliminary Rounds.
Flannel cleared 5-10 (1.78m) on her first attempt after getting over the bar at both 5-6 (1.68m) and 5-8 (1.73m) on her initial try. The senior from West Columbia was unable to clear 5-11 ½ (1.82m), which would have broken the program's 19-year-old record, but this year's Conference USA Champion managed to finish among the top 12 and move on to the national semis, which are scheduled for Saturday, June 13, in Eugene, Ore.
Stephanie Wangui was the only other Roadrunner to compete on Friday night, but she was unable to advance to the next round in the 800 meters. The junior from Leander clocked the second-fastest time of her career, 2:08.64, but that was only good for 20th in the field of 24 middle distance runners.
The three-day meet will conclude on Saturday and the Roadrunners' 1,600-meter relay team of Jennifer Arinze, Paige Patterson, Shantel Swift and Chelsea Taylor are scheduled to compete at 9:25 p.m.