AUSTIN, Texas - At the beginning of the season, Cole Lambourne wrote down a specific goal as to what he wanted to accomplish. The Utah State junior can now check it off his list.

With a spot in the finals of the 400-meter dash on the line, Lambourne did not let it go to waste. The native of Riverton, Utah, finished sixth overall with a time of 46.10 seconds in the quarterfinals of the event during the First Round of the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships at the University of Texas' Mike A. Myers Stadium.

By placing in the top-12, Lambourne punched his ticket to Eugene, Ore., and historic Hayward Field, where the NCAA Finals will be held June 10-13.

"This will be my first time going and it means a lot," said Lambourne, who finished third in his heat. "I would say this is probably my greatest accomplishment so far and this has been my main goal throughout the whole year. I wrote this goal down at the beginning of the year and this is what I wanted to do on the season. It's always nice when you're able to make a goal and follow through, and be able to accomplish the goal. It's really nice, it's a good feeling."

It should be, especially when you consider Lambourne's time not only was his personal best, but also the second-fastest in school history. In the first round of the 400m on Thursday, Lambourne crossed the line in 46.81 to finish in 15th place.

"It was kind of a gut-check," Lambourne said of Friday's race. "It was a tough race to run. I think we had the fastest heat of the day on average. Most of the fastest times came out of our heat, so definitely, some good competition pushed me through.

"I was feeling just a little bit more sluggish Thursday. It was more of a sloppy race, but I knew I had a better race in me. I didn't quite run it as efficiently as I usually do, so I knew that I could come back today and run faster."

Fellow sprinter Parker Bluth advanced to the quarterfinals of the 200m when he finished 17th overall with a time of 20.94 in the event on Friday. The junior, who was tabbed the Outstanding Male Performer of the Meet at the Mountain West Outdoor Track and Field Championships, will look to punch his ticket to Eugene on Saturday night.

Bluth and Lambourne will team up with freshman Clay Lambourne and junior Tanner Hunt in the quarterfinals of the 4x400m relay at 8:45 p.m. Saturday. That event will conclude the West Prelims in Austin.

Several other Aggies were in action Friday as senior Eric Shellhorn and sophomore Colby Wilson finished 19th and 34th in the quarterfinals of the 3,000m steeplechase with times of 9:00.79 and 9:12.46, respectively.

On the women's side, senior Chari Hawkins finished 28th in the first round of the high jump (1.73m/5-08.00) and tied for 32nd in the first round of the 100m hurdles (13.62). Senior Jodi Williams also competed in the high jump and tied for 33rd (1.68m/5-06.00). Sophomore Tori Parkinson represented Utah State in the quarterfinals of the 3,000m steeplechase as she finished 33rd (10:45.84), while Maci Bingham wrapped up her junior campaign with a 41st-place finish in the first round of the discus (45.82/150-04).

Besides Bluth and the 4x400m relay team, two other Aggies will compete on the final day of the West Prelims. Sophomores Devin Wright and Mia Estes will take part in the first round of the men's and women's javelin events, respectively.

Fans can follow Utah State's track & field programs on Facebook at USUTrack.

UTAH STATE RESULTS
NCAA OUTDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS, FIRST ROUND
AUSTIN, TEXAS
MAY 29, 2015

WOMEN'S RESULTS:
100m Hurdles (first round) -- T32. Chari Hawkins, 13.62
3,000m Steeplechase (quarterfinals) -- 33. Tori Parkinson, 10:45.84
High Jump (first round) -- 28. Chari Hawkins, 1.73m (5-08.00); T33. Jodi Williams, 1.68m (5-06.00)
Discus (first round) -- 41. Maci Bingham, 45.82 (150-04)

MEN'S RESULTS:
200m (first round) -- 17. Parker Bluth, 20.94
400m (quarterfinals) -- 6. Cole Lambourne, 46.10
3,000m Steeplechase (quarterfinals) -- 19. Eric Shellhorn, 9:00.79; 34. Colby Wilson, 9:12.46