Three Bison Throwers Advance to Nationals in Shotput

Otterdahl, Talley, Thomson, Moton Advance

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – (NDSU Athletics) The North Dakota State men’s track & field team had an impressive showing in the shot put at the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds on Saturday, advancing three throwers to the NCAA Championships in the event.

Senior Payton Otterdahl, freshman Kristoffer Thomsen, and sophomore Alex Talley finished third, fifth and sixth, respectively, to qualify for the national meet. The top 12 finishers in each event advance to the NCAA Championships in Austin, Texas, on June 5-8.

Otterdahl will enter the NCAA Championships ranked second in the nation for the outdoor season. Thomsen threw a personal-best 63-11.50 (19.49m) on his final attempt to lock up his spot in Austin, and Talley registered a personal-best 63-09.00 (19.43m).

Otterdahl, Thomsen and Talley rank first, third and fourth in NDSU outdoor history in the shot put. All-American Alex Renner (2013-17) is No. 2 on the Bison all-time list.

NDSU senior Kelle’Mon Hinton went 49-05.75 (15.08m) in the triple jump to finish in 25th place.

Bison junior Michael Keogan threw 59-11.75 (18.28m) in the shot put to place 27th.

The Bison men will send a total of six entries to the NCAA Championships, with Otterdahl in the discus, Talley in the hammer throw, and Brendan Artley in the javelin.