MIAMI (May 27, 2017) – After a lengthy weather delay in Lexington, Kentucky, FIU track and field's final two competitors – senior Chris Sullivan (Cocoa Beach, Fla./Cocoa Beach Senior H.S.) and freshman Jovana Ilic (Subotica, Serbia/Bosa Milicevic) – closed out competition at the NCAA East Regional Prelims at the University Outdoor Track and Field Complex at the University of Kentucky. The Panthers had a school-record seven individuals qualify for the regionals, looking to advance to the NCAA Championships, June 7-10 at historic Hayward Field at the University of Oregon in Eugene.
 
The wait proved to be well worth it for Sullivan, who advances to his first NCAA Championship in the high jump. Sullivan, who qualified for the regionals after posting a height of 2.12m at the Conference USA Championships, a mark that ties the school-record, didn't quite reach that height, however made it over the bar on Saturday at 2.10m, which tied for eighth.
 
Sullivan joins his FIU high jumping teammate, Clarissa Cutliff, heading to the Pacific Northwest. Cutliff, the defending C-USA outdoor high jump champion, tied her own school-record in the event on Friday evening, with a mark of 1.82m, good enough for sixth-place. It was the third time this season she has leapt over the bar at that height. She also cleared 1.82m in back-to-back meets at the Florida Relays on April 1 and at the University of South Florida on April 21. This will be Cutliff's second appearance at an NCAA event this year. In February, Cutliff, the reigning C-USA indoor high jump champion, earned Second-Team All-America honors finishing 13th with a height of 1.76m at the NCAA Championships.  
 
The duo is the most to qualify for the NCAA Championships for the Panthers under the guidance of Head Coach Ryan Heberling.
 
In the triple jump, Ilic got her first taste of jumping on the big stage during an NCAA event and wrapped up a solid first season while continuing to show promise for the future. Ilic finished in 34^th-place after posting a leap of 12.32m.
 
Fans are encouraged to follow the team on Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUTrackXC) for all the latest FIU Track and Cross Country news.
 
Follow all of FIU's 18 athletic teams on Twitter (@FIUAthletics), Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSports), YouTube (FIUPanthers), and Instagram (FIUathletics).

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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in eight different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and Riccardo Silva Stadium.

About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offers more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes $9.8 billion each year to the local economy. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded over 200,000 degrees and enrolls more than 56,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.