LAWRENCE, Kan. – The last Islander to be in competition during the 2015-16 season, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi's Philipp Baar ran at the NCAA West Preliminaries on Friday, finishing his career with the track & field team in Lawrence, Kan.
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The runners with the 48 fastest times so far this year qualified for the preliminary race of the 3,000m steeplechase and Baar went in with the 45th best time of the bunch. He left with the 24th.
The Schwerin, Germany native was happy to be there for the first time in his career, but he wasn't content. Baar took the lead almost immediately and led nearly all of the first 2,000 meters of the race.
"It was great to be here. I was excited," Baar said. "I wasn't nervous or intimidated. I went through the first five laps and went hard. I was trying to make it to nationals, so I went out in front and set a pace that would get me in."
Baar eventually fell behind the lead pack and finished ninth in his section with a time of 9:09.65, just over 10 seconds slower than his previous best – 8:59.57 – set at the Texas Relays earlier this season.
"It was really fun," Baar said. "I was happy for the experience. There are so many great runners and I was happy to be part of it."
The top three from each of the three sections, as well as the three next fastest times, advance to the finals in Eugene, Ore., June 8-11.
Baar is a five-time All-Southland honoree in track & field and is in the Islanders Top-10 in nine different events throughout the indoor and outdoor record book, which includes the school record in the steeplechase.
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Watch Baar's race below
