Kole Mathison showed in recent weeks he might be a force in the steeplechase for the Colorado track and field program for years to come.
However, his freshman season has come to an end.
Mathison, the lone men’s representative for the Buffaloes on the opening day of the 2024 NCAA outdoor track and field championships, finished 19th in the national semifinals of the 3,000-meter steeplechase on Wednesday at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.
Mathison was a somewhat surprise qualifier for the Buffs, placing ninth at the NCAA West Preliminaries nearly two weeks ago with a personal-best time of 8 minutes, 47.05 seconds while competing in the steeplechase for just the fourth time in his career.
The top five finishers in each of the two semifinal heats on Wednesday, plus the two next-best times, advanced to Friday’s final. Mathison finished 10th in the opening heat with a mark of 8:51.95.
CU will have entrants in the semifinals of two women’s events on Thursday, with Abbey Glynn taking off in the 400 hurdles at 8:30 p.m. MT. Glynn also will be part of CU’s 4×400 relay team, which caps Thursday’s competition at 9:48 p.m. MT. The finals for both women’s events is on Saturday, when the Buffs also will have competitors in the finals of the heptathlon (Avery McMullen) and the 5,000 meters (Bailey Hertenstein, Ella Baran).
