LA CROSSE, Wis. – Senior Grace Yarkosky (South Lyon, Mich. / South Lyon) of the Plattsburgh State women's track and field team broke her own outdoor program record in the 400-meter dash and advanced to the event final at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Friday. Yarkosky clocked a first-place time of 54.59 seconds in the preliminaries at Roger Harring Stadium in La Crosse, Wis., earning a spot in Saturday's championship race.

Yarkosky won heat two of the three preliminary heats, posting a program-record outdoor time of 54.59 seconds to secure a spot in the finals. Coming out of the final turn in second place, she surged down the home stretch to claim the heat victory.

When the final preliminary heat concluded, Yarkosky's mark remained the fastest overall time, earning her first place and the top seed heading into Saturday's championship race.

Yarkosky will return to the track on Saturday, May 23, for the 400-meter dash final at Roger Harring Stadium, with the race scheduled to begin at 3:10 p.m.