Wake Forest Concludes NCAA East Region First Round Action
5/31/2025 6:31:00 PM | Track and Field
The Demon Deacons will now turn their attention to the NCAA Championships, as four individuals will travel to Eugene, Ore. to compete from June 11-14.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Wake Forest Track and Field team concluded NCAA East Region First Round action on Saturday afternoon, and will now turn their attention to the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore. from June 11-14.
Only two Deacs competed on the final day of competition at the Visit Jax Track at Hodges Stadium, as both senior Emma Douglass and junior Elizabeth Whaley saw their seasons come to an end in the women's 1500m quarterfinals.
Whaley recorded a personal-best time of 4:14.89, which ranks as the third fastest time in the women's 1500m in school history.
Meanwhile, Douglass concluded her spectacular Wake Forest career as she crossed the finish line at 4:25.56. The Wellington, New Zealand, native had a record-breaking campaign in 2025, setting new school records in the women's 1500m during the outdoor season, as well as in the women's 800m for both indoor and outdoor.
Overall, the Deacs closed out another successful NCAA East Region First Round, qualifying four individuals for the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships to match last season's total.
Notable Finishes
Women's 1500m (Quarterfinals)
2025 Outdoor Track and Field Top-10 Marks in School History
From the Staff
"We had four men qualify for the NCAA Championships and we had a few women just miss the cut. We had way more positives than negatives this week. Two of our three throwers we had here are freshman, both Emma [Douglass] and Elizabeth [Whaley] qualified for the women's 1500m quarterfinals and are set to return next year, and Angelina [Perez] is only going to get better as a sophomore next season. They are all now very young, but very experienced athletes. Paul [Specht] had a rare off day yesterday, so I need to take a look at what we did in preparation and make sure we make the right corrections for next year. Hunter [Jones] is just learning the steeple and we are incredibly excited to see what he will do next year. Aidan [Ross] has made big improvement over the course of the season and will have three more years left to continue to progress. The four young men that are going to the NCAA Championships have been incredible all year round. Three out of the four have experience at this meet and JoJo [Jourdon] is having an incredible true freshman season. Watching Rynard [Swanepoel] win his heat really pumped up our guys in the 5K, and they proceeded to dominate an elite field and go first, second, and fourth overall. I'm really excited to see what we'll do at the NCAA finals in a couple of weeks, and I'm hopeful that we can have our highest men's finish in a very long time. " - Director of Track and Field and Cross Country John Hayes
Up Next
The Deacs will travel to the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., with competition running from June 11-14.
Follow the Deacs
GoDeacs.com | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
Only two Deacs competed on the final day of competition at the Visit Jax Track at Hodges Stadium, as both senior Emma Douglass and junior Elizabeth Whaley saw their seasons come to an end in the women's 1500m quarterfinals.
Whaley recorded a personal-best time of 4:14.89, which ranks as the third fastest time in the women's 1500m in school history.
Meanwhile, Douglass concluded her spectacular Wake Forest career as she crossed the finish line at 4:25.56. The Wellington, New Zealand, native had a record-breaking campaign in 2025, setting new school records in the women's 1500m during the outdoor season, as well as in the women's 800m for both indoor and outdoor.
Overall, the Deacs closed out another successful NCAA East Region First Round, qualifying four individuals for the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships to match last season's total.
Notable Finishes
Women's 1500m (Quarterfinals)
- Elizabeth Whaley - 4:14.89
- Emma Douglass - 4:25.56
2025 Outdoor Track and Field Top-10 Marks in School History
- Men's 1500m
- 1st - JoJo Jourdon (3:37.00)
- 4th - Rocky Hansen (3:38.74)
- 5th - Paul Specht (3:39.42)
- 6th - Rynard Swanepoel (3:39.67)
- Men's 3000m Steeplechase
- 3rd - Hunter Jones (8:46.86)
- Men's 5000m
- 1st - Rocky Hansen (13:22.06)
- 3rd - Luke Tewalt (13:28.18)
- 4th - Joe O'Brien (13:32.97)
- 7th - Charlie Sprott (13:40.71)
- 8th - JoJo Jourdon (13:46.76)
- Men's 800m
- 2nd - Rynard Swanepoel (1:46.29)
- Men's 10,000m
- 2nd - Joe O'Brien (28:15.43)
- 3rd - Charlie Sprott (28:22.92)
- 4th - Aidan Ross (28:28.14)
- 6th - Daniel Winter (28:59.60)
- 7th - Jackson Keefer (28:59.71)
- 9th - Hunter Jones (29:09.37)
- Women's 400m
- 7th - Emma Douglass (55.76)
- 10th - Aria Weigh (56.46)
- Women's 400m Hurdles
- 5th - Aria Weigh (59.66)
- Women's 800m
- 1st - Emma Douglass (2:03.25)
- 8th - Rylan Engels (2:07.01)
- Women's 1500m
- 1st - Emma Douglass (4:13.94)
- 3rd - Rylan Engels (4:14.67)
- 4th - Elizabeth Whaley (4:14.89)
- Women's 5000m
- 2nd - Brooke Wilson (15:47.74.)
- Women's 10,000m
- 1st - Brooke Wilson (32:50.07)
- 4th - Angelina Perez (33:23.72)
- Women's Long Jump
- 10th - Bridget McNally (5.72m)
- Women's Hammer Throw
- 8th - Kristyna Peterova (52.27m)
- Women's Shot Put
- 4th - Isabella Gera (15.66m)
- Women's Javelin
- 5th - Rosalind Gergely (49.08m)
- 7th - Julia Pinter (46.49m)
- Women's Heptathlon
- 8th - Seren Rodgers (5,094 points)
From the Staff
"We had four men qualify for the NCAA Championships and we had a few women just miss the cut. We had way more positives than negatives this week. Two of our three throwers we had here are freshman, both Emma [Douglass] and Elizabeth [Whaley] qualified for the women's 1500m quarterfinals and are set to return next year, and Angelina [Perez] is only going to get better as a sophomore next season. They are all now very young, but very experienced athletes. Paul [Specht] had a rare off day yesterday, so I need to take a look at what we did in preparation and make sure we make the right corrections for next year. Hunter [Jones] is just learning the steeple and we are incredibly excited to see what he will do next year. Aidan [Ross] has made big improvement over the course of the season and will have three more years left to continue to progress. The four young men that are going to the NCAA Championships have been incredible all year round. Three out of the four have experience at this meet and JoJo [Jourdon] is having an incredible true freshman season. Watching Rynard [Swanepoel] win his heat really pumped up our guys in the 5K, and they proceeded to dominate an elite field and go first, second, and fourth overall. I'm really excited to see what we'll do at the NCAA finals in a couple of weeks, and I'm hopeful that we can have our highest men's finish in a very long time. " - Director of Track and Field and Cross Country John Hayes
Up Next
The Deacs will travel to the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., with competition running from June 11-14.
Follow the Deacs
GoDeacs.com | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
Players Mentioned
Distance
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