LEXINGTON, Ky. - Joshua Boamah and Braden Presser both clinched a spot in the NCAA Outdoor Championship during the first day of the NCAA East Preliminaries on Wednesday at the UK Outdoor Track and Field Complex in Lexington, Ky.
 
Boamah qualified for nationals in the shot put and hammer throw by placing in the top 12 in both events. He recorded the second-farthest shot put distance in program history at 18.78m (61' 7.5") to finish in 12th place. He also placed 12th in the hammer throw by posting the eighth-best mark in school history at 64.64m (212' 1").
 
Additionally, Dane Vernor earned 37th place in the hammer throw with a top distance of 58.11m (190' 7").
 
Presser secured a trip to the NCAA Championship in the javelin for the third time in his career. He finished in eighth place with a mark of 69.76m (228' 10").
 
"Both Joshua (Boamah) and Braden (Presser) have been reliable all four years and that's what has led them to this point. Joshua being able to qualify in two events was really impressive. To qualify for the hammer in the morning and then come back later in the afternoon to earn a spot for the shot put is a tough task," said Director of Track and Field / Cross Country Jamie Cook. "He's very humble and appreciative of the opportunity he has to represent the team at nationals.
 
"Braden is just a tremendous competitor. He has dealt with a lot of ups and downs this year, but for him to come out and qualify for nationals for the third time is amazing. The competitiveness he showed with difficult weather and dealing with multiple lightning delays was tremendous. He deserves everything he gets because he puts the work in. Very happy for him and coach (Chris) Campbell. Braden was rewarded for his hard work for not only himself, but his teammates as well. It's great to see his success with the amount of work he puts in to improve his performance, but the overall team as well."
 
"Braden had to face some adversity this season, but he always persevered. That allowed him to win the Patriot League Championship and have one of his best performances of the year to qualify for the championship meet again," added Associate Head Coach Chris Campbell. "He was very determined today to make it back to this point. He didn't let anything stand in his way today and that was spectacular to see.
 
"Joshua has been the go-to guy for us in the throws over the last few seasons. Today he earned the title of being one of the best throwers ever at Navy. His shot put was incredible because he opted to reset on his last throw of the day. It's usually very difficult to regain your rhythm to produce a good throw when you do that, but it ended up being his best distance, which helped him beat the athlete that was ahead of him for the final qualifying spot by .01m. When the pressure is on he finds a way to deliver and that was the difference for him today. He is a true gameday competitor."
 
Walker Rudisaile concluded his collegiate career by breaking the Navy record in the pole vault. He posted a height of 5.32m (17' 5.5") to finish in a tie for 18th place.
 
"Another great performance tonight that might be overlooked is Walker Rudisaile breaking the school record in the pole vault. The height he cleared qualified for nationals, but because he had a few more misses than other competitors he just missed out on advancing," mentioned Cook. "Again a tremendous competitor and posting a school record on his final attempt at Navy was a great way for him to end his career. He's another fantastic leader for this team and a prime example of someone showing up when it mattered most."
 
Jacques Guillaume, Nathan Kent and Brahmir Vick all advanced to the quarterfinals in their respective races for placing in the top 24.
 
Guillaume tied the second-fastest 400m hurdle time in team history (51.21) to garner a 19th-place finish.
 
Kent ran his fastest 400m of the season at 46.40 to place third in his heat and 19th overall.
 
Vick finished in 16th place in the 110m hurdles with a time of 13.85.
 
All three athletes will compete on Friday for an opportunity to qualify for nationals. Fans can watch the 110m hurdles (6:15 p.m.), 400m (6:50 p.m.) and 400m hurdles (7:25 p.m.) on ESPN+.
 
"Brahmir (Vick), Nathan (Kent) and Jacques (Guillaume) were all very excited about competing tonight. It's always tough getting through to the next round and all three did that by executing through challenging conditions. Jacques and Brahmir narrowly missed earning an automatic qualifying spot for placing at least third in their heat, but both still advanced with their times. Nathan did a great job in his heat to place third and claim an automatic qualifying spot. We wanted to earn the right to compete for another day and that's what they did tonight."
 
Murphy Smith was the additional mid to compete in Lexington. He clocked in a time of 30:10.21 to place 29th in the 10,000m.
 
The women's track and field team begins its first day of the East Preliminaries tomorrow. Renny Murphy will compete in the javelin at 1:30 p.m.