INDIANAPOLIS – Six Eastern Kentucky University track and field student-athletes have qualified for the NCAA East Region Preliminary Championships, to be held May 25-28 in Bloomington, Indiana.
 
Quantasia Perry (women's 100 meters and 200 meters), Laura Taborda (women's steeplechase), Jone Zabaleta Larranaga (women's 5,000 meters), Madison Fleming (women's 100-meter hurdles), Ahmed Jaziri (men's steeplechase), and Ahmed Sayf Kadri (men's steeplechase) will compete at Indiana University's Robert C. Haugh Complex for a chance to advance to the NCAA Championships.
 
The top-48 performances from the season in every event – after scratches, injuries, etc. – earned entry to the NCAA East Region Prelims. The top-12 finishers from each event at the East and West Regionals will advance to the NCAA Championships, to be held June 8-11 in Eugene, Oregon.
 
Quantasia Perry
Perry qualified for the regional meet by running school-record times in the 100 meters (11.42) and 200 meters (23.35) at the ASUN Championships last Saturday.
 
The senior from Covington, Georgia is only the fourth EKU woman (and the first since 1998) to sweep the conference indoor and outdoor 200-meter titles in the same year.
 
She enters the East Prelims ranked No. 31 in the 100 meters and No. 32 in the 200 meters.
 
It is the second consecutive year Perry has qualified for the regional. She just missed advancing to the quarterfinals of the 200 meters last year, finishing 30^th overall in a time of 23.62.
 
Perry will race in the first round of the 100 meters at 7:00 p.m. ET and the 200 meters at 8:45 p.m. ET on Thursday, May 26.
 
Laura Taborda
Taborda qualified in the 3,000-meter steeplechase for the second straight year. She won gold in the event at the ASUN Championships last Friday, breaking her own school record with a time of 10:07.54.
 
That time ranks Taborda No. 22 in the field of 48 competitors.
 
She will race in the semifinals of the steeplechase at 5:40 p.m. ET on Saturday, May 28.
 
Jone Zabaleta Larranaga
Zabaleta Larranaga punched her ticket to the NCAA East Prelims by running 16:02.55 in the 5,000 meters at the Virginia Challenge back in April.
 
That is the second fastest 5K in EKU history and just over three seconds off the school record. It ranks No. 25 in the regional field.
 
The native of Azkoitia, Basque County, Spain won gold in the 5,000 meters at the ASUN Championships last Saturday.
 
Zabaleta Larranaga will race in the semifinals of the 5,000 meters at 8:10 p.m. ET on Saturday, May 28.
 
Madison Fleming
Fleming qualified in the 100-meter hurdles by running a personal-best 13.53 to take silver at the ASUN Championships last Saturday.
 
That time is the second fastest in EKU history, behind only Olympian Jackie Humphrey (12.83 / 1988).
 
The Atlanta native is the third-ranked freshman in the entire 100-meter hurdles field. She ranks No. 43 overall.
 
Fleming will race in the first round at 6:00 p.m. ET on Thursday, May 26.
 
Ahmed Jaziri
Jaziri enters the NCAA East Prelims with the No. 1 steeplechase time in the entire country – 8:24.33. He ran that time on April 29 at Stanford's Payton Jordan Invitational. He defeated four Olympians on his way to victory in that race. It is the fastest steeplechase time by an NCAA athlete since 2015.
 
Jaziri won the 1,500 meters and 5,000 meters at the ASUN Championships last Saturday. He did not compete in the steeplechase at the meet.
 
The native of Rades, Tunisia earned All-America honors last year after finishing 10^th overall in the steeplechase at the NCAA Championships in Eugene.
 
He will race in the NCAA East semifinals at 5:40 p.m. ET on Friday, May 27.
 
Ahmed Sayf Kadri
Sayf Kadri qualified for the regional meet by running a 16-second personal best of 8:41.76 at the ASUN Championships last Friday. He won silver in that race, losing only to Liberty All-American Felix Kandie.
 
The freshman from Tunisia is ranked No. 12 in the steeplechase field.
 
He will race in the semifinals at 5:40 p.m. on Friday, May 27.