EUGENE, Ore. (6/9/16) – Arkansas State thrower Erin Farmer and sprinter Kristina Knott concluded their outdoor seasons at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Ore., Thursday.

Farmer narrowly missed out on a trip to the shot put finals as she ranked 10th after three attempts. Making her debut at the NCAA Championships, Farmer opened the competition with a throw of 15.58m (51-01.50) to rank 10th after the first round. She followed with a throw of 16.11m (52-10.25), but slipped to 14th despite the improvement. Farmer went to the ring for her final throw in 16th, but posted a throw of 16.61m (54-06.00) to move up to ninth. Tochi Niemchi of SMU was in flight one and posted a throw of 16.77m (55-01.25) on her final attempt to edge out Farmer for the final spot in the finals.

“Erin competed well and just missed the final by finishing 10th,” said A-State head coach Jim Patchell . “She was disappointed coming so close to making the final, but Erin has accomplished a lot this year. This was her first time at nationals and to come away with a top-10 finish gives her something positive to build on.”

With the 10th-place finish, Farmer earns second team All-American accolades. She is the sixth female student-athlete in program history to finish top-10 at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. She owns the school and Sun Belt Conference record in shot put with a throw of 17.80m (55-10.50), a throw that meets the Olympic A Standard and qualifies her for the Olympic Trials.

Knott earned honorable mention All-American accolades after placing 17th overall in the 100-meter dash. She sprinted to a time of 11.47 seconds in the second heat, placing seventh in the fastest of the three heats. The eight athletes that advanced to Saturday's final are awarded first team All-America while the next eight (9-16) are second team honorees.

“Kristina had a solid race,” Patchell added. “She was only three-hundredths of a second off her personal best. She's had a great year, but we knew it would take a great race to make the final.”