JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Junior Owen Karas of the Yale men's track and field team placed fifth in his heat of the 1500m with a time of 3:40.48 Wednesday night in NCAA East First Round competition at Visit Jax Track at Hodges Stadium. Karas' performance earns him a spot in the quarterfinals Friday, where he will vie for a spot in next month's NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore.  The top 12 advance.
 
The start of Wednesday's race was delayed nearly four hours due to weather. Karas was one of 48 competitors to earn spots in the NCAA East First Round; the top five in each of the four heats, plus the next four best times, advanced. Karas entered the meet with the ninth-best time, a school-record 3:37.52 at the Raleigh Relays in March.
 
Karas has competed at the NCAA East First Round once before, advancing to the quarterfinals and placing 13th a year ago – missing out on advancing to the NCAA Championships by just .23 seconds.