Shapard Finishes 13th in 400m Hurdles at NCAA National Championships

Thursday, June 11

Fayetteville, Ark.

TBA

University of Utah

NCAA Championships

Shapard Finishes 13th in 400m Hurdles at NCAA National Championships

6/11/2009 12:00 AM | Track & Field

June 11, 2009

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Senior Chelsea Shapard of the University of Utah track & field team finished seventh in the second heat and 13th overall in the 400-meter hurdle semifinals Thursday during the second day of the NCAA Championships at John McDonnell Field on the University of Arkansas campus.

"Chelsea ran her guts out. She was in the mix the entire race and battled until the end," Utah head coach Kyle Kepler said. "It turned out to be a blanket finish and at this level it comes down to hundredths of a second most of the time."

The senior from Park City, Utah finished seventh in heat No. 2 of the semifinal round with a time of 58.36 seconds. She was just .16 seconds behind a fourth-place finish in the heat and an appearance in the final race.

In yesterday's first round, Shapard turned in a time of 58.33 seconds to place 14th overall and third in the fifth heat.

"She got out to a much better start today," Kepler said. "She had a little trouble with the eighth hurdle but was right there at the end when it came down to a sprint to the finish line. It was exciting."

Despite not qualifying for the final heat, Shapard did manage to improve in each of her three career appearances in the 400-meter hurdles at the NCAA Championships. In 2008, Shapard finished 15th in the nation in a semifinal heat with a time of 59.19 seconds, after starting in the inside lane of the second heat at Drake University. In 2007, she finished 18th with a time of 59.49 seconds in the meet held at Sacramento State.

"It's sad to Chelsea's career come to an end," Kepler said. "She always ran hard and never gave up. We're going to miss her.

"I'm proud of how both of our athletes [Shapard and hammer thrower Sarah Grimm] represented Utah at the NCAA Championships this week," Kepler said.