Track & Field: Anumba, Appleton punch tickets to NCAA Championships

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Posted on Saturday, May. 27, 2023, 11:35 pm

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Courtesy UVA Media Relations

Photo: UVA Athletics

The Virginia women’s track & field team concluded its competition at the NCAA East Regional Preliminaries Saturday at Hodges Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla., as Ashley Anumba and Margot Appleton each secured their place at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

ANUMBA HEADED BACK TO NCAAS

Virginia discus thrower Ashley Anumba became the third Cavalier to punch her ticket on the women’s side as she qualifies in the discus for the second consecutive season hitting a mark of 55.22 meters (181’2”).

  • Anumba posted the fifth-best qualifying mark with her third throw of the competition
  • Anumba’s qualification comes in the midst of an impressive season in which she set the Virginia discus record (60.97m 200’0”) and won silver at the ACC Championships
  • She becomes just the second Cavalier on the women’s side to qualify for the NCAA Championships in the discus in consecutive years
  • In 2022, Anumba earned second-team All-American honors thanks to a 15th-place finish at the championship meet

Janae Profit turned in an impressive performance competing at the NCAA East Preliminary round for the first time. Profit tossed a personal best in the discus reaching 52.45 meters (172’1”) to place 13th in the competition missing the final qualifying position by less than a foot. Profit also competed in the shot put on Thursday.

APPLETON THROUGH IN THE 1500

Margot Appleton assured her place at the NCAA Championships as she raced to a third-place finish in her heat clocking a time of 4:14.54.

  • After advancing to the quarterfinals for the first time in her career, Appleton made the most of her opportunity running a well-executed race to secure the third of five automatic qualifying places
  • The performance marks the first time Appleton has qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships, but the sophomore is set to make her third appearance at an NCAA Championship meet during the 2022-23 athletic season
  • She earned first-team All-American honors in the mile at the indoor championships in February. In November, she helped secure Virginia’s first top-10 finish at the NCAA Cross Country Championships since the 2013 season
  • In the midst of a strong 1500 campaign, Appleton has run a personal-best 4:08.96 and won her first ACC title over the course of the outdoor season

An excellent season in the 1500 meters comes to an end for Anna Workman who put on a pair of impressive performances in the qualifiers. Workman advanced to the quarterfinals on Thursday, running a personal-best time of 4:18.82. In the quarterfinals, she bettered her time once more posting 4:14.65 – just .37 seconds off the final time qualifier for the NCAA Championships. Workman now ranks seventh all-time at Virginia in the 1500m.

In all, the Cavalier women will send four individuals to the NCAA Championships including: Sophie Atkinson (10,000), Ashley Anumba (Discus), Margot Appleton (1500) and Alix Still (Heptathlon).

UP NEXT

Virginia’s nine individuals will compete at the NCAA Championships in Austin, Texas, from June 7-10.