PUEBLO, Colo. – West Liberty University sophomore Reese Burnside closed out a spectacular sophomore season here Thursday with a Top 20 finish in the pole vault at the 2023 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships at the Colorado State-Pueblo ThunderBowl.

    Burnside missed his first attempt at the opening height of 4.75 meters (15 feet, 7 inches) but cleared it easily on the second try to advance to the second round. With the bar moved up to 4.90 meters (16 feet, 0.75 inches), Burnside once again had a miss on his first vault but cleared on his second attempt to advance.

    The bar was moved up to 5.05 meters (16 feet, 6.75 inches) for the third round, which would have been a school and Mountain East Conference record for Burnside. Unfortunately, he was one of several vaulters to come up short at this height, ending his afternoon.

    Burnside finished in 16th place in the event, which was won by Harding (Ark.) freshman Vlad Malykhin. A two-time Ukrainian youth national champion, Malykhin cleared 5.45 meters (17 feet, 10.5 inches) on his third and final attempt to edge out junior Thomas Nieto of Texas A&M-Kingsville for the top spot.

    Thursday's event turned the final page in an excellent sophomore season for Burnside, a former West Virginia state high school champion from Doddridge High School and West Union, W.Va.

    Burnside won the 2023 MEC indoor and outdoor pole vault championships and spent most of the outdoor season setting and breaking his own school records. He bumped that mark up one more time in the final tune-up before the NCAA Division II Nationals with a school-record and NCAA provisional qualifying mark of 5.02 meters (16 feet, 5.50 inches).

    Head coach Justin Simpson and his Hilltoppers aren't finished with the 2023 NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships just yet. They'll be back at the ThunderBowl on Saturday night for the high jump event. Sophomore Liam Vinskovich will be making his NCAA D2 Nationals debut after qualifying with a leap of 2.12 meters (6 feet, 11.50 inches). The event is scheduled to start at 6:45 p.m. (EDT).