The Butler track and field team had four Bulldog men qualify for this season's 10,000 meters at the NCAA Outdoor East First Round. The four-day event begins Wednesday and will be hosted by the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Ky.
 
The top 48 declared student-athletes were accepted into the first round competitions for each individual event. The top 12 finishers in the 10,000 meters from the NCAA East First Round will join the 12 top finishers from the NCAA West First Round to make up the 24 athletes to compete for the NCAA 10K title in Eugene, Ore., at next month's NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
 
William Zegarski is Butler's highest-ranked member of the 10K squad. Zegarski earned second-team All-America honors in the event at the 2025 NCAA Championships. He is back after adding to his accolades on the track by winning his second-consecutive BIG EAST title in the 10,000 meters last weekend with a time of 28:51.84. Zegarski's qualifying time of 28:28.18 from the Raleigh Relays ranks him 40th in the country (and 14^th in the East region) in the 10K event this year. 
 
Matthew Forrester returns to the NCAA East First Round but this time in the 10,000-meter event. The South African native earned the bronze medal in the 10K at the BIG EAST Championships last Thursday with a qualifying time of 28:55.93 (31^st in the East Region). Forrester ran in the 5,000 meters last year, finishing 20^th nationally at the NCAA Outdoor Championships after qualifying out of the East First Round.  
 
Brendan Thomas will join the Bulldogs for his first East First Round. Thomas earned fourth place at the BIG EAST Championships last weekend with a personal-best and qualifying time of 29:05.53, which is 39^th in the East Region.
 
Eli Fullerton rounds out the Bulldog qualifiers in the 10K at the NCAA East First Round. Fullerton earned fifth place at the BIG EAST Championships last weekend with a qualifying time of 29:05.56 (40^th in the region). 
 
Bulldog fans can tune into the event Wednesday, May 27 for the 10K semifinals at 9:10pm on ESPN+.  A link to live results and more information can be found at butlersports.com.