Missouri track and field senior Skylar Coffey finished 21st in the men’s discus finals Friday at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.
Coffey launched a throw of 182 feet, 4 inches on his first attempt. Oklahoma junior Ralford Mullings won the national title with a meet-record toss of 227-4.
During the NCAA West Regional on May 30 in College Station, Texas, Coffey punched his ticket to Eugene with a career-best throw of 193-4, which was also the fifth-best throw in program’s history.
Bradley senior and former Helias standout Jack Crull finished sixth in the men’s 1,500-meter run with a time of 3 minutes, 47.61 seconds on Friday. Washington junior Nathan Green won with a time of 3:47.26. Just .68 separated Green from 11th-place Michigan sophomore Trent McFarland.
Crull became the first Bradley first-team all-American in outdoor track and field since 1955. He advanced to the final after winning the second heat Wednesday with a personal-best time of 3:40.51. He came to Eugene ranked 85th in the event.
The men’s meet wrapped up Friday, with Texas A&M and USC being crowned co-champions with 41 points apiece. It is the first time there were co-champions since 2013, when the Aggies tied with Florida. Arkansas finished third with 40 points, and Auburn was fourth with 35.
South Florida won the 4×400 relay to close the men’s meet, edging Texas A&M at the finish. Arkansas was third in the event, and USC took eighth to earn one team point. The Aggies earned eight points — a win would have been worth 10 — and the Razorbacks got six.
Arkansas protested after the race that a USF runner hindered a Razorback, but the protest was denied. If successful, Texas A&M would have won the national title, and Arkansas and USC would have tied for second.
The women’s title will be decided Saturday. MU seniors Kristi Perez-Snyman and Claudina Diaz will compete in the high jump finals at 7:30 p.m.