Milwaukee City Wire

The Milwaukee track and field team is set to participate in the 2024 NCAA West Preliminary Rounds with three athletes qualifying for the event. The competition will take place at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Athletes must achieve a top-48 mark in their region to qualify. Natalie Block will compete in both the 100m hurdles and the 400m hurdles, entering with times ranked among the top 20. Anthony Campbell will participate in the long jump, while Golden Cotton will race in the 100m dash.

This marks a second appearance at this level for all three athletes. Campbell and Cotton participated last year, while Block first competed in 2021. Block is notable for being the first Panther since Alex Chollet in 2015 to qualify for multiple events in one season.

Block has had a record-breaking season, setting new program records multiple times. Her achievements earned her recognition as Alfreeda Goff Outdoor Track & Field Women's Athlete of the Year and Outstanding Women's Runner of the Meet at the Horizon League Championship. She ranks 19th and 20th respectively for her events entering preliminaries.

Campbell's performance includes a program-record leap at Clark Wood Invitational and winning at Horizon League Championships with a meet record jump. He ranks as Milwaukee's highest-seeded long jumper historically, entering preliminaries ranked 22nd.

Cotton shifted from competing in the 200m last year to focusing on the 100m this season, breaking program records during his performances. His efforts were recognized with awards similar to Block's: Alfreeda Goff Outdoor Track & Field Men's Athlete of the Year and Outstanding Men's Runner of the Meet.

Athletes who secure top-12 times or marks at these preliminary rounds will advance to compete at NCAA Championships scheduled from June 5-8 in Eugene, Oregon.