Elon, N.C. – The Elon University track & field team will be represented by three student-athletes at the NCAA East Region Preliminary Round May 24-27 in Jacksonville, Fla.
 
Kaitlin McGoogan (hammer throw), Leandra Lorenz (1,500) and Hannah Miller (3000 steeplechase) have all earned spots in the preliminary round. The top 12 finishers, out of 48 competitors, in each event from the East will join the top 12 finishers in the West Region to compete at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships June 7-10 in Austin, Texas.
 
McGoogan is Elon's highest seeded competitor at No. 23 in the hammer throw. She posted a career-best mark of 200-feet-3 (61.05m) at the Wake Forest Invitational in April before becoming the CAA champion in the event two weeks later with a distance of 196-0 (59.74m). She is one of three hammer throwers from the CAA who will compete at the meet and it will be McGoogan's second consecutive trip to the regional meet. She placed 40^th a year ago with a distance of 180-4 (54.98m). McGoogan is the only student-athlete in program history to qualify for the NCAA regional in the hammer throw.
 
Lorenz is the No. 34 seed in the 1,500, qualifying for the NCAA East Regional for the second consecutive year. She qualified for the meet on the strength of her 4:18.14 time at the Mount Olive Final Qualifier just four days ago, but she is also the two-time defending CAA champion in the 1,500, having won the title for the second time earlier in May with a time of 4:36.60. Lorenz placed 46^th at the regional last year with a time of 4:31.62. She joins Melissa Anastasakis (2019, 2021) and Kimberly Johansen (2015, 2016, 2017) as Elon runners who have qualified for the regional meet in the event at least twice. Alana Black also qualified in 2006. Lorenz is the only competitor in the event from the CAA.
 
Miller will make her NCAA regional debut as the No. 35 seed in the 3000 steeplechase. She was the CAA runner-up earlier in the May with a time of 10:27.08 and set a career-best time of 10:23.93 at the Penn Relays in late April. She is one of four steeplechase runners from the CAA in the regional meet. She is the third Elon student-athlete to qualify for NCAA regionals in the event and the first since Tereza Novotna went in back-to-back years in 2015 and 2016.
 
Elon's three regional qualifiers equal last year's total for the Phoenix and is the most for the program since five qualified in 2016. A complete schedule of events is listed below.
 
Thursday, May 25
10:00 am – Hammer throw (Kaitlin McGoogan)
6:30 pm – 1500 first round (Leandra Lorenz)
 
Saturday, May 27
5:15 pm – 1500 quarterfinals (Leandra Lorenz)
5:40 pm – 3000 steeplechase quarterfinals (Hannah Miller)