TicketsCINCINNATI – Four members of the University of Cincinnati track & field program are slated to compete at the 2021 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
The competition will run March 12-13 inside the Randal Tyson Track Center. The women will be represented by Taylor Beard in the High Jump and Ellie Leather in the one mile, while the men will see both Aaron Bienenfeld (5k) and Alec Sandusky (5k and 3k) compete for the Bearcats.
THE SCHEDULE
All four Bearcats will compete on the first day of events with Sandusky set to compete an additional day on Saturday and Leather optioned in, pending the results of the one-mile semifinal on Friday. Bienenfeld and Sandusky will open the meet for the Bearcats on Friday at 4:05 p.m. ET as they compete in the men's 5000m. Beard and Leather will complete the first day of competition with the high jump at 5:30 p.m. ET., and the women's mile semifinals at 8 p.m. ET. Sandusky will extend the Bearcats stay through Saturday, competing in the men's 3000m at 4 p.m. ET. Pending Leather's finish on Friday, the mile finals will be set for 7 p.m. ET.
ELITE ELLIE
Leather will compete as the tenth woman in UC history to earn a slot at the NCAA indoor championship. Leather quickly moved up the UC record books into the No. 1 spot all-time with an best run of 4:42.80, seven seconds faster than the previous best, held for 19 years. Leather's entrance trip to Fayetteville marks her first time at the NCAA indoor meet.
BAD BIENENFELD
Bienenfeld will be competing in his first NCAA Indoor Championship as the 17th man to represent Cincinnati after pacing the competition at the Camel City Invitational securing a 5000m personal best victory with a time of 13:41.89. With this time, Bienenfeld entered the elitist NCAA top-5 in the 5000m where he currently holds the No. 5 spot and sits atop the UC record books in the No. 1 spot all time.
BEARD TOPS THE LIST
Beard will be making her NCAA debut as well, the 11th woman in UC history to compete indoors. The AAC Field Athlete of the Week earlier this season swept the high jump in regular-season competition, claiming four first place crowns and a personal-best mark of 1.83m (6-0) at the H-Town SpeedCity Series. With this mark, Beard currently holds the NCAA's No. 5 spot in the high jump and the No. 4 spot in UC's all-time record book.
SAVAGE SANDUSKY
Sandusky breaks into the UC record books as the 18th man to represent the Bearcats at the NCAA Indoor Championship. He is coming off running back-to-back record-setting performances in the 5000m and the 3000m. Sandusky set a new personal best in the 5000m with a clocking of 12:43.02 at the Camel City Invitational, which projected him into the NCAA Top-10 and slated at No. 6 and No. 2 in the UC record book, respectively. Sandusky claimed another second-place podium finish in the 3000m at the H-Town Speed City Series where he was able to set another personal best with a time of 7:53.78, enough for the NCAA's No. 12 spot and his second No. 2 spot in the UC's all-time record book.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Live results will be available on NCAA.com.
FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati cross country and track and field, please visit GoBEARCATS.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Bearcats on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram under the handle @GoBearcatsTFXC. Fans are encouraged to join in the conversation using the hashtag #Bearcats.
The competition will run March 12-13 inside the Randal Tyson Track Center. The women will be represented by Taylor Beard in the High Jump and Ellie Leather in the one mile, while the men will see both Aaron Bienenfeld (5k) and Alec Sandusky (5k and 3k) compete for the Bearcats.
THE SCHEDULE
All four Bearcats will compete on the first day of events with Sandusky set to compete an additional day on Saturday and Leather optioned in, pending the results of the one-mile semifinal on Friday. Bienenfeld and Sandusky will open the meet for the Bearcats on Friday at 4:05 p.m. ET as they compete in the men's 5000m. Beard and Leather will complete the first day of competition with the high jump at 5:30 p.m. ET., and the women's mile semifinals at 8 p.m. ET. Sandusky will extend the Bearcats stay through Saturday, competing in the men's 3000m at 4 p.m. ET. Pending Leather's finish on Friday, the mile finals will be set for 7 p.m. ET.
ELITE ELLIE
Leather will compete as the tenth woman in UC history to earn a slot at the NCAA indoor championship. Leather quickly moved up the UC record books into the No. 1 spot all-time with an best run of 4:42.80, seven seconds faster than the previous best, held for 19 years. Leather's entrance trip to Fayetteville marks her first time at the NCAA indoor meet.
BAD BIENENFELD
Bienenfeld will be competing in his first NCAA Indoor Championship as the 17th man to represent Cincinnati after pacing the competition at the Camel City Invitational securing a 5000m personal best victory with a time of 13:41.89. With this time, Bienenfeld entered the elitist NCAA top-5 in the 5000m where he currently holds the No. 5 spot and sits atop the UC record books in the No. 1 spot all time.
BEARD TOPS THE LIST
Beard will be making her NCAA debut as well, the 11th woman in UC history to compete indoors. The AAC Field Athlete of the Week earlier this season swept the high jump in regular-season competition, claiming four first place crowns and a personal-best mark of 1.83m (6-0) at the H-Town SpeedCity Series. With this mark, Beard currently holds the NCAA's No. 5 spot in the high jump and the No. 4 spot in UC's all-time record book.
SAVAGE SANDUSKY
Sandusky breaks into the UC record books as the 18th man to represent the Bearcats at the NCAA Indoor Championship. He is coming off running back-to-back record-setting performances in the 5000m and the 3000m. Sandusky set a new personal best in the 5000m with a clocking of 12:43.02 at the Camel City Invitational, which projected him into the NCAA Top-10 and slated at No. 6 and No. 2 in the UC record book, respectively. Sandusky claimed another second-place podium finish in the 3000m at the H-Town Speed City Series where he was able to set another personal best with a time of 7:53.78, enough for the NCAA's No. 12 spot and his second No. 2 spot in the UC's all-time record book.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Live results will be available on NCAA.com.
FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati cross country and track and field, please visit GoBEARCATS.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Bearcats on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram under the handle @GoBearcatsTFXC. Fans are encouraged to join in the conversation using the hashtag #Bearcats.