Cards Earn Four More NCAA Qualifications to Close East Regional

Saturday, May 31

Jacksonville, FL

All Day

University of Louisville

NCAA East Regional

Jayden Ulrich and Jade Whitfield punch their tickets to the 2025 NCAA Outdoor Championships.

Photo by: Mallory Peak | Louisville Athletics

Cards Earn Four More NCAA Qualifications to Close East Regional

May 31, 2025 | Track & Field

Results

Sharvari Parulekar (women’s triple jump), Layla Roebke (women’s 3000m steeplechase), Jayden Ulrich (women’s discus throw), and Jade Whitfield (women’s discus throw) punched their tickets to Eugene.

By: Sam Gercak

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The University of Louisville track & field teams secured four more berths to the NCAA Outdoor Championships on Saturday to conclude their third and final day of competition at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field East Preliminary Round.

The quartet of Sharvari Parulekar (women's triple jump), Layla Roebke (women's 3000m steeplechase), Jayden Ulrich (women's discus throw, and Jade Whitfield (women's discus throw all advanced, giving the Cardinals a total of 12 qualifications to the national championship meet, the most for the program since the NCAA switched to a two-regional qualification system in 2010.

The Cards dominated the women's discus throw in Jacksonville with Ulrich and Whitfield becoming the first Louisville tandem to qualify for the NCAA championships in the event in program history. The pair also became the first duo for the Louisville women to qualify for the national championship in the same event since 2022.

After punching her ticket to Eugene in the women's shot put on Friday morning, Ulrich won the regional title in the women's discus throw by over five meters, posting a final mark of 64.81m (212-7) as part of a field series that saw each of the senior's three throws eclipse the 62-meter barrier.

With the pair of qualifications in the ring, Ulrich becomes the first Cardinal to qualify in multiple events in consecutive seasons since Emmonnie Henderson did so in the women's shot put and discus throw for three straight seasons from 2015 to 2017.

Along with Ulrich's dominant showing in the women's discus throw, Whitfield earned her spot at the national championship meet for the second time in the last three years, finishing fourth with a toss of 57.05m (187-2).

Roebke made some history of her own in the women's 3000m steeplechase, becoming the first in school history to qualify for NCAAs in the event by clocking the sixth-fastest time in the field with a 9:49.08 to shatter her previous program record of 9:54.20 that she set at the ACC Outdoor Championships on May 16.

Parulekar earned the final Louisville qualification of the day in the women's triple jump, earning the 12^th and final berth to Eugene with a leap of 12.93m (42-5.25) to advance to the national championship meet in her first season at the NCAA level and become the first Cardinal to qualify in the event since 2012.

In the women's high jump, Soledad Jean closed out her collegiate career with a final clearance of 1.74m (5-8.5) to finish in a tie for 25^th, while Sophia Day placed 41^st in the women's triple jump with a mark of 12.17m (39-11.25).

On the track, the Cards closed out the meet with Kiyah Yeast's 21^st-place finish in the 200m with a time of 23.30 and Olivia Alessandrini's 5000m time of 16:23.98 to place 41^st.

Next up, the Cardinals will conclude their season at the NCAA Outdoor Championships that are set to take place from Jun. 11-14 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. The full list of qualifiers for the national championship meet can be found below.

KJ Byrd | Men's Decathlon
Ashley Callahan | Women's Pole Vault
Lucy Fellows | Women's Heptathlon
Paul Kallenberg | Men's Decathlon
Geoffrey Kirwa | Men's 3000m Steeplechase
Roman Kuleshov | Men's Triple Jump
Sharvari Parulekar | Women's Triple Jump
Layla Roebke | Women's 3000m Steeplechase
Synclair Savage | Women's Long Jump
Jayden Ulrich | Women's Shot Put, Women's Discus Throw
Jade Whitfield | Women's Discus Throw

NCAA East Regional – Day Four
May 31, 2025
Jacksonville, Fla. | Visit Jax Track at Hodges Stadium

* = Personal Record
(sr) = School Record

Women's 200m
Kiyah Yeast – 23.30

Women's 5000m
Olivia Alessandrini – 16:23.98

Women's 3000m Steeplechase
Layla Roebke – 9:49.08 * (sr)

Women's High Jump
Soledad Jean – 1.74m (5-8.5)

Women's Triple Jump
Sharvari Parulekar – 12.93m (42-5.25)
Sophia Day – 12.17m (39-11.25)

Women's Discus Throw
Jayden Ulrich – 64.81m (212-7)
Jade Whitfield – 57.05m (187-2)

For the latest information on Louisville Cross Country/Track & Field, visit GoCards.com, or follow the team's Instagram and Twitter account at @louisvilletfxc or on Facebook at facebook.com/LouisvilleTFXC.