CANYON, Texas – The West Texas A&M No. 3 Buffs and No. 5 Lady Buffs qualify 28 student-athletes for the NCAA Division II National Championships held May 23-25 in Emporia, Kansas at the Welch Stadium.
 
A total of 754 participants, 377 men and 377 women, will compete in the championships. Student-athletes qualified for the championships by reaching a provisional standard established for each event. Emporia State University will serve as host of the championships. The championships will be streamed live on www.NCAA.com. 

Pittsburg State leads the qualifiers with 22 men and 24 women. Grand Valley State has 22 men, 19 women; Missouri Southern with 16 men; Minnesota State with 13 men, 21 women; Adams State with 21 women; and Colorado School of Mines with 18 women. Lone Star Conference foe Angelo State has qualified 12 women. 
 
Here's a breakdown of their representation:
 
14 BUFFS 
Participants:14 student-athletes across 12 events.
Key Athletes:

• Isaac Botsio and Jerry Jakpa qualified in the 100m and will be part of the Buffs' 4x100 relay team.
• Jeremiah Lauzon will compete in the 200m and the 4x100 relay.
• William Amponsah leads the nation in the 10,000m and also qualified in the 5,000m.
• Harry Louradour is set to compete alongside Amponsah in the 5,000m event, marking his comeback to the national stage
• Hamdi Ali is competing in the high jump for the third consecutive year.
• Joseph Oreva is a top contender in the long jump, making his first outdoor championship appearance.
• Luke Holcombe is the sole thrower representing the Buffs, with previous experience in both indoor and outdoor championships.
• Senior Gerard Bryant and sophomore Romet Vahter qualified in the decathlon, having competed in the indoor championships as well.
• Freshmen Jace Lynch (4x100) and Manuel Cuesta (triple jump) are making their first appearances.
• Mid-distance runners Aziz Mohammed and Prince Mcabelo, fresh off successful indoor and LSC outdoor championships, are competing for the first time in outdoor nationals.

 
14 LADY BUFFS 
Participants:14 student-athletes across 10 events.
Key Athletes:

• Laiten Greeson is competing in the heptathlon and the 100m hurdles.
• Freshman Deborah Acheampong and graduate student Corrssia Perry are competing in three events each, the most by any WT athlete.
• First-time outdoor national championship appearances for Kailee Benton, Sarah Koomson, Amari Weatherford, Sherifatu Sheriff, Joy Udo-Gabriel, and Blessing Akintoye. Udo-Gabriel and Akintoye have previous indoor championship experience.
• Florance Uwajeneza leads the distance squad in the 5,000m and 10,000m, also leading the nation in the latter.
• Betty Bajika is making her debut appearance in the outdoor championships in the 1500m.
• The Lady Buffs qualified both the 4x100 and 4x400 relays. 
• Veterans DeOndra Green and Jordan Brown are returning as legs for the relays with Green on the 4x100 and Brown on the 4x400. 
• Miriam Zanovello is the sole triple jump contender for the Lady Buffs but she's been here before and will make her last appearance at the biggest stage before graduation

 
With a mix of seasoned veterans and promising newcomers, both the Buffs and Lady Buffs are poised to make their mark at the NCAA Division II National Championships in Emporia, Kansas.