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The collegiate outdoor track and field season is drawing to a close as teams prepare to compete in the NCAA first round. A runner with ties to Columbus will be travelling to Sacramento on June 8 to vie for a top-24 placement and a spot in the next round of compet ition. Jessica Rabius, daughter of Timothy and Denise Rabius of East Bernard and granddaughter of the late Daniel and Annie Munsch of Columbus, will be looking to continue her strong year for Houston Christian University as she reaches the national level meets for the second straight season.
Rabius has had an impressive season for the Houston-based college on the track. After strong performances in several meets throughout the indoor and outdoor seasons, Rabius finished the season with recognition by the conference for her top tier performances. She claimed two gold medals during the Southland Conference Outdoor Championship meet that helped her claim an All-Conference First Team placement in the two events she took her golds in: the 1500 m run and the 5000 m run. Considering the outstanding performances in the meets prior to the conference championship, the Southland Conference awarded Rabius the Outstanding Running Events Performer Award to recognize her for her achievements this season.
With such a strong regular season already on her 2023 resume, Rabius entered the NCAA First Round with expectations of finding a strong performance and potentially moving on to the national semifinals. After taking third place in the 800 m opening round to qualify for the quarterfinals, Rabius followed it up with another third-place finish in the quarterfinals to claim her spot at Mike A. Myers stadium in Austin for the National Semifinals. Her time was the sixth fastest amongst all runners competing in the 800-meter run. Rabius competes in the semifinals on Thursday night, June 8 for a chance to run in the finals.
