The Virginia Cavaliers men’s track and field team won big in the NCAA semifinals on Wednesday, June 5 with four runners qualifying for the Finals tonight in Oregon.
Junior Nate Mountain and Senior Yasin Sado finished the 3000m steeplechase in second (8:32.92) and fourth (8:30.03) place, respectively. Senior Wes Porter hit the track for his first NCAA Outdoor Championship, qualifying for the 1500m final after finishing third in his heat (3:39.88).
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Meanwhile, Shane Cohen finished first in his heat for the 800m with 1:46.94. Cohen’s strong kick in the last 100m pushed him to the front of the pack in the home stretch.
“I guess that’s been a trademark I’ve been doing most of the season,” Cohen said in an interview with LetsRun.com about his late kick. “Coach doesn’t like it too much, but we’re working on it.”
Cohen is reevaluating strategy for his upcoming finals race. Although he’s running a steady 52 in the backend, his coaches are encouraging him to run with the group instead of relying on the last-minute burst.
“But obviously going Friday [in the finals]…we’re going to have to change tactics up a little bit,” Cohen said of his late kicks. “Make sure I stay more engaged because obviously we’re getting to a different level now in the finals—staying engaged and making sure I’m in the pack.”
Cohen, a current graduate student at Virginia in his final year of eligibility, ran four years at Tampa University. He came off a femur stress fracture from cross country in his last season at Tampa, which slowed his times and challenged his Division I recruiting.
“The coaches [at Virginia] trusted me and gave me the opportunity and now, I’m taking advantage of it.”
The NCAA Finals will air tonight on ESPN. Viewers can catch Cohen in the 800m at 10:15pm, Mountain and Yasado in the 3000m steepelechase at 9:25pm, and West in the 1500m at 9:12pm EST.
