Drake’s Kessler Punches Ticket To NCAA Championships; Fogg And Basten Advance Out Of West Region First Round

Senior thrower moves up seven spots on final throw to make NCAA field

Drake University senior Adam Kessler qualified for next month's NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in the shot put Wednesday evening at the NCAA West Region Preliminary Round in College Station, Texas.

Kessler's mark of 64-1 (19.53m) came on his final throw to place him sixth in the field and among the top 12 to advance from College Station to Eugene, Ore.

After fouling on his first attempt, Kessler threw 61-9 (18.82m) on his second attempt and found himself in 13th place, one spot out of advancing, going into his final attempt. He more than responded to the challenge, moving up seven places to comfortably qualify for the NCAA Championships in sixth place.

His performance highlighted a day that also saw the 1,500-meter duo of Isaac Basten and Adam Fogg advance out of the first round of their heats to Friday's quarterfinal round.

Basten had the fourth-fastest time of the day and was fourth in his fast heat to move on with a time of 3:43.65, less than half a second off his personal best. The sophomore clocked a 56.06 final 400 meters, the second-fastest in his heat to guarantee he moved on.

Fogg also easily advanced by finishing third in his heat, where the top five finishers all finished within 0.17 seconds of each other. Fogg's time of 3:45.58 was the 19th best on the day as the top five finishers in each of the four heats automatically advanced.

The pair races again Friday at 5:45 p.m. in hopes of a top-12 finish to join Kessler as Drake's representatives at the NCAA Championships.

Two other Bulldogs also competed Wednesday, with freshman David Olowookere finishing with the 26th fastest time in the 400-meter hurdles at 51.33. He finished fifth in his heat to narrowly miss advancing.

Joey Harkins finished 42nd in the hammer throw with a toss of 186-6 (56.86m) on his last throw of the competition.

Drake's women take up competition next as Busiwa Asinga (440mH) and Yinka Mary Ajayi (400m) race Thursday afternoon.

NCAA West Region Preliminary
Drake Wednesday Results

1,500 Meters (First Round)
4. Isaac Basten, 3:43.65
19. Adam Fogg, 3:45.58

400-Meter Hurdles (First Round)
26. David Olowookere, 51.33

Shot Put
6. Adam Kessler, 64-1 (19.53m)

Weight Throw
42. Joey Harkins, 186-6 (56.86m)

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Players Mentioned

Yinka Mary Ajayi: Sprints; Sophomore

Busiwa Asinga: Sprints; Sophomore

Isaac Basten: Distance; Sophomore

Adam Fogg: Distance; Junior

Joey Harkins: Throws; Junior

Adam Kessler: Throws; Senior

David Olowookere: Hurdles; Freshman

Players Mentioned

Yinka Mary Ajayi
: Sophomore
: Sprints

Busiwa Asinga
: Sophomore
: Sprints

Isaac Basten
: Sophomore
: Distance

Adam Fogg
: Junior
: Distance

Joey Harkins
: Junior
: Throws

Adam Kessler
: Senior
: Throws

David Olowookere
: Freshman
: Hurdles