Grace and El Mancini and Dennis Manyeah Qualify for the Meet
May 25, 2021 –
Three La Salle Explorers track and field athletes will represent their school in the NCAA Eastern Preliminary Outdoor meet in Florida starting on May 26 through 29. This is the second consecutive season that three Explorers have qualified.
Distance runners and sisters Grace and Eleanor (El) Mancini will take to the starting lines and high jumper Dennis Manyeah will be competing in Florida .
Grace Mancini will be wearing the blue and gold for the third straight season at the Outdoor Eastern Preliminary. But this is the first where she qualifies in two events. The graduate student will be in the 3000 meter Steeplechase and the 5000 meter run. Mancini owns the school record in the Steeplechase running a 9:50.73 at the Quaker Invitational in April. Her time ranks fifth in the region. The 5000 meter time of 15:58.40 is another program-best set at the Temple Invitational also in April. Mancini finished second in both events at the Atlantic 10 Championships. Each event is a semifinal. In the 3000m Steeplechase there are 3 heats. The top three finishers in each heat plus the next three best times will qualify for the national championships in Eugene. Mancini is in a position to get to the finals. The 5000m has 2 heats. The top 5 finishers in each heat plus the two next best times will be the runners that go to Eugene. Both of her races are on Saturday evening.
El Mancini will be at the Eastern Preliminary for the first time in her career. The junior will be in the 10000 meter run. At the Raleigh she turned in a time of 34:30.92 to earn her spot. She won the 10000 at the Atlantic 10 Championships covering the distance in 34:59.81. The event in Florida will be one run with the top 12 advancing to the NCAA Championship race.
The Mancini’s reside in Media, PA and are graduates of Cardinal O’Hara High School. Two other sisters, Liz and Christine, are members of the Explorers women’s track team. Liz is a distance runner while Christine runs in middle distance events. Liz Mancini was second to her sibling El at the Atlantic 10 in the 10000 meter event.
Manyeah returns to the Eastern Preliminary meet for the second straight outdoor season. The senior won the Atlantic 10 title in the high jump clearing the bar at 2.15 meters. The Penn Wood graduate has a personal best jump of 2.16 meters that was set at the Eastern Preliminaries in 2019 which is the program record. Competition for him starts on Friday. Manyeah, a resident of Darby, Pennsylvania, also runs in sprint events running in the 400 meters and as a member of the 4 x 400 meters relay team.
The schedule for the Explorers at the NCAA Eastern Region Preliminaries
Women’s 10000 Meter: Semifinal, Thursday 9:10 pm – El Mancini
Men’s High Jump: First Round, Friday 1 pm – Manyeah
Women’s 3000 Meter Steeplechase: Semifinal, Saturday 6:10 pm – Grace Mancini
Women’s 5000 Meter: Semifinal 8:30 pm – Grace Mancini
Written By: Glenn Papazian
Contact: Glenn@PhillyCollegeSports.com
Be the first to comment