GAINESVILLE, FL - Senior Allison Laske (Canandaigua, NY/Canandaigua) became the second Buffalo athlete to qualify for the Division I Track and Field Championships on Saturday at the NCAA East Regionals at Percy Beard Track at the University of Florida.

Laske earned her berth to nationals by finishing fourth in the 800 meters on Saturday evening in a time of 2:07.05. This will be Laske's first trip to the national championships, joining senior teammate Laura Olson (Lyons, NY/Lyons), who earned her second straight trip with a third place finish in the pole vault on Friday. The Bulls hope to have one other qualifier as they will await word early this week on decathlete Steve Esler (Rochester, NY/Aquinas), who is hoping to earn an at-large bid as well. The decathlon was not contested at the East Regionals.

The top five finishers in each event at this weekend's four regional meets (East, Mid-East, West, Mid-West), as well as a to-be-determined number of "at-large" selections based on the NCAA descending order list following the regional meets, will advance to the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Austin, TX June 9-12.

"Allison ran a very smart and tactical race," said UB women's track and field coach Vicki Mitchell. "For someone who is not used to the humid conditions the event was contested in, she really adjusted well. She made a move to separate herself from a pack of runners with about 150 meters to go and was able to hold on for fourth place. For her to have a kick left on the second day was really encouraging to see. She ran a great race and really earned the right to go to nationals."

Elsewhere, sophomore thrower Sarah Vance (Lockport, NY/Lockport) competed in her second event on the weekend, finishing 23^rd in the shot put with a throw of 46-4. She had finished 31^st in the women's hammer throw with a toss of 158-10 on Friday. Also, freshman jumper Rayshon Higgins (Buffalo, NY/Timon-St. Jude) finished 19th in the triple jump with a distance of 45-10.

"I know Sarah and Rayshon were both a little disappointed with their efforts," said Mitchell, "but for them to get this kind of experience as underclassmen will only help their development."