Ray Scotten Advances to Finals in Pole Vault at NCAA Championships :: Saluki sophomore one of 15 finalists to clear 5.30 meters

June 10, 2004

AUSTIN, Texas - Southern Illinois University's Ray Scotten was one of 15 competitors to clear 5.30 meters in the preliminaries of the pole vault competition at the NCAA Track & Field Championships Thursday. The group of 15 advances to Saturday's finals, which will be televised by CBS Sports.

Twenty-five individuals began the competition, which started at 5.00 meters and continued until 16 or fewer remained at a bar height. Scotten, who is the only Saluki athlete at the meet, cleared 5.00 meters, 5.15 meters and 5.30 meters to advance to the finals.

The sophomore from Indianapolis, Ind. holds the school record in the pole vault with a mark of 5.50 meters, which he accomplished earlier this year at the Indiana Relays.

"He accomplished his mission today and made it through the qualifying round," said Saluki coach Cameron Wright. "He's been here before, so it's nothing new. His goal is to finish in the top three and qualify for the Olympic Trials. To do that, he will probably need to clear 5.60 on Saturday."

The top eight finishers in the NCAA event are named All-Americans.