The championships are being held at the Outdoor Sports Complex in Marion, Ind., and conclude Saturday.
Williams, a sophomore, ran a time of 1:54.20, which placed him fourth in his nine-man heat. Though the time wasn't good enough to earn a top three finish and an automatic qualifier, it was good enough to earn one of six wild-card spots in tomorrow's semifinals.
His time was 16th overall out of the 18 semifinal qualifiers and was well below his GSAC Championship time of 1:54.20 back in April.
The semifinals are slated for 3:35 (CDT).
Two other Lancers ran in their qualifying heats of the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Naomi Van Setten ran an 11:41.93 in her first-ever outdoor championships, finishing eighth in her heat and 25th overall. She did not qualify. Sergio Rodriguez ran a 10:00.17 and also didn't qualify, finishing last in his heat.
Ashlee Cervantes will also run in the women's 800-meter semifinal Friday, and Rodriguez, Juan Romero and Mark Langworthy will all run in the marathon Saturday morning.
Live results of every event at the national championships are available at the link above.
