MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University track & field team finished in 26th place at the 2008 NCAA East Regional Track and Field Championships on Saturday evening at Mike Long Track in Tallahassee, Fla.

WVU was led by sophomore distance runner Keri Bland as she concluded her trip to the NCAA Regionals by placing third in the 1,500m run.

The Fairview, W.Va., native finished at 4:24.81 and garnered six points for the Mountaineers. Her time fell just over two seconds shy of Florida State’s Hannah England, who earned first place after finishing at 4:22.53.

Bland vaulted toward the top of the field by winning the first heat and placing second overall in the preliminaries of the 1,500m on Friday afternoon.

Freshman high jumper Katelyn Williams placed 11th with a jump of 1.71m. The Chesterland, Ohio, native put forth a strong showing despite falling just shy of earning any team points.

Junior Alison Spiker completed the field as she finished 26th in the 3,000m steeplechase with a time of 11:22.98.

After qualifying in the top five of her respective event, Bland will compete in the 1,500m run at the NCAA Championships on June 11-14 at Des Moines, Iowa. Print View   Email