Bridgewater Qualifies for NCAA 1,500 Finals

'DECATUR, ILL. 5/27/04  - Keene State College's Dave Bridgewater finished fifth his 1,500-meter heat on Thursday to qualify for the finals of the event at the NCAA Division III Track and Field Championships being held at Millikin University in Decatur, Ill.

Bridgewater, a junior from Unionville, Conn., posted a time of 3:54.67 to earn a place in Saturday's finals.

"I was a little tight and tense at the start," said Bridgewater, who took the early lead in the race.  "A couple of runners eventually passed me, but I had a good kick at the end."

"He ran a very smart race," added KSC Coach Peter Thomas.  

Matt Winkler, a freshman from Williams College, had the best heat time with a mark of 3:52.42.

Bridgewater, who earned cross country and indoor track All-America earlier this year, hopes to add outdoor track All-America to his list of honors this season.

"Everyone is back to square one," said Bridgewater.  "Hopefully I can come back with another good race on Saturday. I'm just glad I get to run another day."