INDIANAPOLIS–For the first time since the 2019 season, five members of the UMass Lowell track and field team have qualified for the NCAA East Preliminaries, as announced by the association on Thursday.
 
Graduate students Jenna Solimine (Haverhill, Mass.), Derek Holmes (Marshfield, Mass.) and Benjamin Drezek (Cumberland, R.I.), senior Izzy Giesing (Bradford, Vt.) and freshman James Kotowski will represent the River Hawks at the 2022 NCAA East Preliminaries hosted by Indiana next weekend, May 25-28, in Bloomington, Ind.
 
"We are very pleased to have five qualifiers. That's the most our program has had since elevating to Division I," remarked Head Coach Gary Gardner. "All five athletes have set school records this season, which shows the quality of the student-athletes we're sending. All of them are still on the upswing and should compete well in Indiana."
 
After qualifying for the 2022 NCAA Indoor Championships just months ago, Giesing heads to Indiana chasing down a strong performance in the women's 1,500 meter. The middle-distance veteran ran a personal-best and school-record 4:17.21 in the event at the 2022 Virginia Challenge earlier this year to earn her a spot in the NCAA Preliminary Round.
 
Solimine makes her debut at the 2022 NCAA Outdoor Preliminaries after being a repeat competitor at the NCAA Cross Country Championships each year. An unstoppable force in the distance events, Solimine hopes to punch a ticket to Oregon after earning a spot in the 10,000-meter at the 2022 Virginia Challenge off a career-best time of 34:25.82.
 
No stranger to the NCAA Outdoor Championships, Drezek returns to the East Preliminaries after qualifying in 2019 for the 3,000-meter steeplechase. With years of experience and a program-record time of 8:46.19 under his belt, Drezek will once again represent the River Hawks in the long-distance obstacle race  
 
Holmes had a record-breaking season on the track for the River Hawks in 2022. A mainstay for the middle-distance and distance crews, Holmes became the first student-athlete in program history to register a sub-four-minute mile at the Friar Invitational this season. He will aim to replicate his successful campaign at the East Preliminaries in the men's 1,500-meter, heading to Indiana with a time of 3:41.82.
 
Flashing explosive strength, Kotowski has stunned in his rookie campaign for the throwers. Smashing a school record in just his second meet, Kotowski went on to set new program-best marks two more times to end the season. He capped his season with a first-place mark at the 2022 George Davis Invitational off a career-best toss and an NCAA qualifying mark of 71.13m (233'5").
 
Starting with a field of 48 qualifiers in each event, the top twelve finishers from the East and West Preliminaries will advance to the 2022 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championship in Eugene, Ore., June 8-11.