The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
NCAA Indoor Championships
No. 10/3 Track and Field multi-events shine at NCAA Indoor Championships
03.11.2021 | Track & Field / Cross Country
Sophomore Leo Neugebauer sits in second through four events of the heptathlon, while freshman Kristine Blazevica placed seventh in the pentathlon.
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – A pair of multi-event competitors for the No. 10/3 Texas Track and Field program shined on the first day of the 2021 NCAA Indoor Championships on Thursday. Sophomore Leo Neugebauer is in second place through four events of the heptathlon, while freshman Kristine Blazevica placed seventh in the pentathlon with a score of 4,162 points.
Neugebauer, a German international, posted a pair of collegiate-best marks in the first two events of the day to surge to the top of the leaderboard. First, he finished fifth in the 60-meter dash with a time of 6.98, tallying 889 points. Neugebauer followed that up with a huge mark of 7.87m/25-10 in the long jump. His effort was the best in the field and added 1,027 points to his score. Neugebauer was the only heptathlon competitor to score more than 1,000 points in an event on Thursday. In addition, his winning jump moved him up to No. 5 in Texas history. It was the ninth-longest jump in the NCAA this season.
Following those two events, Neugebauer produced two more solid outings in the shot put and high jump competitions. He threw the shot 14.95m/49-0.75 and finished fourth in a strong field, then cleared the high jump bar at 2.03m/6-8 to finish third in the event. An All-American in the heptathlon last year, Neugebauer currently sits in second place with 3,534 points to his name, just 21 points behind the leader.
Blazevica, a Riga, Latvia native, finished seventh in the pentathlon at her first NCAA Indoor Championships. The freshman scored 4,162 points, the fourth-best performance on UT record. Blazevica's highest-scoring event was the 60-meter hurdles, the pentathlon opener, on Thursday, as she tallied 997 points with a time of 8.59. From there, she added 842 points in the high jump with a clearance at 1.69m/5-6.5, 664 points in the shot put with a throw of 12.04m/39-6 and sixth in the long jump with a best mark of 5.89m/19-4. She capped the pentathlon with a time of 2:18.59,her collegiate-best, in the 800-meter run , good for 843 points and sixth place.
The 2021 NCAA Indoor Championships continue on Thursday and Friday this week from the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville, Ark. Thursday's action begins at 10 a.m. with a continuation of the men's heptathlon. Field events for both the men and women begin at 11 a.m., while racing on the track begins at 2 p.m. for the men, and 7 p.m. for the women. Live coverage will be available throughout the day on WatchESPN.
Players Mentioned
