JACKSONVILLE, Florida (May 27, 2021) - Rhema Otabor qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the javelin to highlight the first two days of action at the East Preliminaries in Jacksonville. 

The freshman from Nassau, Bahamas, snagged the final qualifying spot, placing 12th in the 48-person field with a mark of 50.25m. 

"I'm really proud of her. For a true freshman to come to this meet and be able to execute in it - it's awesome," said head coach Ryan Heberling. "I told her, 'Look, it doesn't matter how you get to the party - you got there.' It was a great effort. We are really proud of her." 

In the pole vault, Filippa Miller earned a 37th place finish, clearing 3.92m. Miller entered the East Prelims seeded 46th. 

"This was her first opportunity to go to regionals," said Heberling. "It was an awesome season. I think she learned a lot, and now the focus shifts to indoor and doing something special there." 

On Wednesday, Queshun Watson-Riggins began the action for FIU with a 20th-place mark in the long jump with a leap of 7.42m. 

"It was the biggest meet he had ever competed in in his life," said Heberling. "What he experienced on Wednesday - he can take that and immediately apply it to his competition tomorrow in the triple jump. Now he gets another opportunity. But at the end of the day, he made it in two events - it's something we're very proud of." 

On Friday, Watson-Riggins competes in the triple jump and teammate Desmond Dorceus sees action in the discus. 

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