Colorado State University Athletics
Friday, March 11
Birmingham, AL
Colorado State
vs
NCAA Championships
Ram Duo Ready for NCAA Championships
3/10/2022 4:38:00 PM | Track & Field
Lexie Keller and Lauren Gale are Set to Compete at National Meet
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The indoor chapter of the 2021-22 season closes this weekend for the Colorado State track and field program with Lexie Keller and Lauren Gale putting the final punctuation on it in the 2022 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships at the Birmingham CrossPlex.
Â
The top 16 student-athletes in each event across NCAA DI compete at the national meet. For the Rams, Gale and Keller will compete in the 400-meter race and the pentathlon, respectively. Gale also qualified for the 200 but is opting out of it to focus exclusively on the 400.
Â
Keller's pentathlon will start (9:20 a.m. MT) and end on Friday, while Gale races in the semifinal Friday evening (6:25 p.m. MT) and if she advances, will race in the finals on Saturday evening (6:20 p.m. MT). Live Stats are available here https://csura.ms/3tLZc5F, while a live video broadcast will be provided by ESPN3 (https://csura.ms/3hU0kii)
Â
In Gale's semifinal, 16 student-athletes are split into four heats with the winner of each heat advancing then the next four fastest times. Gale enters as the eighth seed with a qualifying time of 51.64, which she set at the Colorado Invitational on Jan. 28th. However, the time between Gale and the top seed is less than a second – 0.87. Gale is one of two (Latasha Smith, UCF) runners that don't attend a Power Five institution. Ten reign from the Southeastern Conference, while the other four are split evenly between Big 12's Texas and Pac 12's USC. The race's top seed – Alexis Holmes of Kentucky – won her second Southeastern Conference 400 title two weeks ago with a time of 50.77.
Â
Keller's pentathlon will start in the blocks for the 60-meter hurdles with the final event – the 800 – scheduled for 2:40 p.m. MT. She represents the 15th spot, sporting a score of 4,105 points that she achieved at the New Mexico Collegiate Classic on Feb. 4th. Unlike Gale's field, the pentathlon has seven total multis from non-power five schools with a diverse geographic spread from UT Arlington to Cornell. The overwhelming favorite is Florida's Anna Hall who comes in with a high score of 4618 points – 216 more points than the next competitor Kristine Blazevica of Texas. However, the separation from the No. 6 spot and Keller is just 67 points. Seven of the 16 competed in the heptathlon at the 2021 NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Â
Both Gale and Keller own CSU's all-time marks in the two events. Keller, of Albuquerque, N.M., will become the second Ram all-time to compete in the pentathlon, joining Katie Lloyd who finished seventh in 2007. Meanwhile, Gale, of Ontario, Canada, will be CSU's first to run in the 400 at indoor nationals.
Â
Coaches' Corner
Assistant Coach J.J. Riese - Sprints
"The venue is really nice. It's huge with several different facilities, so it is no wonder that they have the ability to host a national meet and do it well. As far as the race, the 400 is almost a wide-open field. The thing about it is all the runners are very fast and sound fundamentally. If a runner has any technical mistake or get caught in traffic, it'll cost them, because the rest of the field will benefit. There is no room for error. Lauren can win the championship but also miss the final. She's prepared and tapered to give it her best though as she's done all year."
Â
Assistant Coach Ryan Baily - Multis
"After the frontrunner, Anna Hall, the field opens up quite a bit. Lexie has a shot to make first team, which is the top eight. Health wise, she is more tapered and looser then where she was at two weeks ago at conference. She's capable to eclipse 4,200 points if she connects on her Any Given Day marks [personal average best marks] across all five events. Even in her pentathlon PR this season, she fell short on reaching her Any Given Day on a few events, so she has lots of potential to improve. Her mind, health and spirit is ready for the challenge too, so we are excited to compete tomorrow."
Â
Pentathlon Schedule (Mountain Time) | Friday, March 11th
9:20 AMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 60 Hurdles
10:30 AMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â High Jump (2 pits)
12:30 PMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Shot Put (2 circles)
1:30 PMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Long Jump (2 runways)
2:40 PMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 800 Meters
Â
400-Meter Schedule (Mountain Time) | Friday, March 11th
6:25 PMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Semifinal
Â
400-Meter Schedule (Mountain Time) | Saturday, March 12th
6:20 PMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Final
Â
For More on Colorado State Track & Field and Cross Country follow: Twitter – CSUTrackFieldXC | Instagram – csutrackfieldXC | Facebook – Colorado State Track & Field/Cross Country
Â
Â
The top 16 student-athletes in each event across NCAA DI compete at the national meet. For the Rams, Gale and Keller will compete in the 400-meter race and the pentathlon, respectively. Gale also qualified for the 200 but is opting out of it to focus exclusively on the 400.
Â
Keller's pentathlon will start (9:20 a.m. MT) and end on Friday, while Gale races in the semifinal Friday evening (6:25 p.m. MT) and if she advances, will race in the finals on Saturday evening (6:20 p.m. MT). Live Stats are available here https://csura.ms/3tLZc5F, while a live video broadcast will be provided by ESPN3 (https://csura.ms/3hU0kii)
Â
In Gale's semifinal, 16 student-athletes are split into four heats with the winner of each heat advancing then the next four fastest times. Gale enters as the eighth seed with a qualifying time of 51.64, which she set at the Colorado Invitational on Jan. 28th. However, the time between Gale and the top seed is less than a second – 0.87. Gale is one of two (Latasha Smith, UCF) runners that don't attend a Power Five institution. Ten reign from the Southeastern Conference, while the other four are split evenly between Big 12's Texas and Pac 12's USC. The race's top seed – Alexis Holmes of Kentucky – won her second Southeastern Conference 400 title two weeks ago with a time of 50.77.
Â
Keller's pentathlon will start in the blocks for the 60-meter hurdles with the final event – the 800 – scheduled for 2:40 p.m. MT. She represents the 15th spot, sporting a score of 4,105 points that she achieved at the New Mexico Collegiate Classic on Feb. 4th. Unlike Gale's field, the pentathlon has seven total multis from non-power five schools with a diverse geographic spread from UT Arlington to Cornell. The overwhelming favorite is Florida's Anna Hall who comes in with a high score of 4618 points – 216 more points than the next competitor Kristine Blazevica of Texas. However, the separation from the No. 6 spot and Keller is just 67 points. Seven of the 16 competed in the heptathlon at the 2021 NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Â
Both Gale and Keller own CSU's all-time marks in the two events. Keller, of Albuquerque, N.M., will become the second Ram all-time to compete in the pentathlon, joining Katie Lloyd who finished seventh in 2007. Meanwhile, Gale, of Ontario, Canada, will be CSU's first to run in the 400 at indoor nationals.
Â
Coaches' Corner
Assistant Coach J.J. Riese - Sprints
"The venue is really nice. It's huge with several different facilities, so it is no wonder that they have the ability to host a national meet and do it well. As far as the race, the 400 is almost a wide-open field. The thing about it is all the runners are very fast and sound fundamentally. If a runner has any technical mistake or get caught in traffic, it'll cost them, because the rest of the field will benefit. There is no room for error. Lauren can win the championship but also miss the final. She's prepared and tapered to give it her best though as she's done all year."
Â
Assistant Coach Ryan Baily - Multis
"After the frontrunner, Anna Hall, the field opens up quite a bit. Lexie has a shot to make first team, which is the top eight. Health wise, she is more tapered and looser then where she was at two weeks ago at conference. She's capable to eclipse 4,200 points if she connects on her Any Given Day marks [personal average best marks] across all five events. Even in her pentathlon PR this season, she fell short on reaching her Any Given Day on a few events, so she has lots of potential to improve. Her mind, health and spirit is ready for the challenge too, so we are excited to compete tomorrow."
Â
Pentathlon Schedule (Mountain Time) | Friday, March 11th
9:20 AMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 60 Hurdles
10:30 AMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â High Jump (2 pits)
12:30 PMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Shot Put (2 circles)
1:30 PMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Long Jump (2 runways)
2:40 PMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 800 Meters
Â
400-Meter Schedule (Mountain Time) | Friday, March 11th
6:25 PMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Semifinal
Â
400-Meter Schedule (Mountain Time) | Saturday, March 12th
6:20 PMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Final
Â
For More on Colorado State Track & Field and Cross Country follow: Twitter – CSUTrackFieldXC | Instagram – csutrackfieldXC | Facebook – Colorado State Track & Field/Cross Country
Â
Players Mentioned
Sprints
/ Track & Field
Jumps/Multis
/ Track & FieldMya Lesnar - 2025 Outdoor Shot Put National Champion
Friday, June 20
CSU T&F: Mya Lesnar Post NCAA Nationals
Friday, June 13
CSU T&F: Kajsa Borrman Post NCAA Nationals
Thursday, June 12
CSU T&F Pre-Nationals Press Conference: Brian Bedard
Thursday, June 05