WSU's Evans Kurui finishes ninth in 5,000, EWU's Cort Gebbers places 19th in discus at NCAA Championships

EUGENE - Washington State distance standout Evans Kurui concluded his sophomore season with a ninth-place finish in the 5,000-meter national final on Friday at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

Earlier in the day, Eastern Washington's Cort Gebbers capped his sophomore year with a personal-best throw, placing 19th in the discus final at Hayward Field on the University of Oregon campus.

Kurui finished with a time of 13:51.49 - about 10 seconds slower than his personal best, set during the NCAA West regional last month - in his first career 5,000-meter national championship run, earning second-team All-America honors. He is the first Cougar All-American in the event since fellow Kenyan Bernard Lagat won the 5K national title in 1999.

Kurui is also the first WSU competitor since 2008 to claim two All-America accolades in the same postseason. He finished sixth in the 10,000-meter final on Wednesday, collecting first-team All-America honors.

New Mexico's Habtom Samuel won both distance events, increasing his career count of individual NCAA championships to five across outdoor and indoor track events, and cross country. Samuel finished the 5,000 in 13:38.93.

Gebbers received All-America honorable mention recognition after a career-best throw of 188 feet, 8 inches. The Brewster, Washington, product still ranks second in program history in the discus. Gebbers entered last month's regional ranked No. 47 in the West, but set a personal record with a 186-6 throw to place 11th and qualify for nationals.

Oklahoma's Ralford Mullings repeated as the national champion in the discus with a throw of 215-11.

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