Washington completes men's NCAA Outdoors squad with four qualifiers

Washington will send a total of seven men to the NCAA Outdoor Championships after four qualified at the NCAA West Prelims in Fayetteville, Arkansas, on Friday.

All seven men will compete for the Huskies in Eugene for the first time, as pole vaulter Jimmy Rhoads and 1500m runner Reuben Reina are the only two with prior NCAA Outdoors experience. Rhoads competed previously for Penn, while Reina competed for Arkansas.

All three 1500m quarterfinal qualifiers - Reina, Martin Barco, and Tyler Bilyard - ended up in the second heat together with the knowledge that the time qualifying spots were up for grabs after a slow first heat. Reina and Barco went with the lead pack, working their way out of traffic by the final lap to advance. Barco set a personal best in 3:37.94 to finish third and move to No. 7 in school history. Reina took a time qualifier spot in sixth place with a time of 3:38.14. Bilyard could not find a kick in the final lap and finished 11th in the heat in 3:42.91.

The men's NCAA squad is set!

🐺 Alex Rhodes, 400m
🐺 Martin Barco, 1500m
🐺 Reuben Reina, 1500m
🐺 Evan Jenkins, 10,000m
🐺 Isaac Briggs, Steeplechase
🐺 James Rhoads, Pole Vault
🐺 Teko Cates, Decathlon

Day 3 Recap: https://t.co/N0zlkOj8Znpic.twitter.com/XcYfM8byVv— Washington Track & Field and Cross Country (@UWTrack) May 30, 2026

Big Ten bronze medalist Isaac Briggs was next up in the 3000m steeplechase. He spent most of the race running from fifth place, but blew by another runner down the home stretch to take fourth and set a huge PR of 8:31.75 to draw within a second of Ed Trippas' 2023 school record. He came away with the top time qualifier to punch his first ticket to the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

Former NCAA Division III champion Alex Rhodes has been managing an injury he suffered in the Big Ten final two weeks ago, but that didn't stop him from qualifying for NCAA Outdoors in the 400m on Friday, He went out conservatively through the first half of the race, but turned up the heat down the stretch and finished in fourth in 45.43 to earn the top time qualifier to become the first Husky to make the 400m final since Maurice McNeal in 2011.

Leland Lieberg (high jump, 19th), Jonathan Frazier (400m hurdles, 18th), Roman Hutchinson (triple jump, 24th), and Trevontay Smith (triple jump, 26th) closed out their seasons on Friday.

Reina, Barco, Briggs, and Rhodes join decathlete Teko Cates, 10,000-meter runner Evan Jenkins, and pole vaulter Jimmy Rhoades on the bus to Eugene from the men's side. The women's team already includes heptathlete Sofia Cosculluela, javelin thrower Saydi Orange, 10,000-meter runner Chloe Thomas, and pole vaulters Hana Moll, Amanda Moll, Sara Borton, and Veronica Vacca, with more opportunities coming on Saturday.

This article originally appeared on Huskies Wire: Washington track completes men's NCAA Outdoors squad with 4 qualifiers