Ashton Riner, BYU’s NCAA javelin champion, finished fourth at the USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships Saturday, missing a berth in the world championships by one place.
Riner, who threw a school record 198 feet a month ago, produced only two legal throws in six attempts; the others were scratches. Her third attempt resulted in a throw of 185 feet, 5 inches.
The event was won by Kara Winger with a throw of 210-10; Ariana Ince was second at 198-3; Avione Whetstone was third at 194-5.
The top three finishers in each event will represent the U.S. in the World Track and Field Championships, which will be held on this same track in mid-July.
Riner’s BYU teammate, Alexis McAllister finished 14th with a throw of 160-6.
Two other BYU athletes competed on Saturday. Zach McWhorter, the runner-up in the last two NCAA indoor championships, finished ninth with a clearance of 18-4 ½. Chris Wilsen won the competition with a mark of 18-8 ¼. Luke Winder was second with the same mark. The next seven finishers cleared 18-4 ½ — including McWhorter — which meant final placement was determined by number of misses.
Kenneth Rooks finished 10th in the finals of the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 8:37.43. Hillary Bor and Evan Jager – a pair of Olympic medalists – finished 1-2 with times of 8:15.76 and 8:17.29, with Benard Keter third in 8:19.16.
Five BYU athletes will compete on Sunday, the final day of the U.S. championships — Michael Whittaker (javelin), Whittni Orton (5,000-meter run), Casey Clinger (5,000), Conner Mantz (5,000) and Courtney Wayment (3,000-meter steeplechase).