EUGENE, Ore. – Laurie Barton was Clemson’s lone athlete to advance out of her event’s semifinal round during the second day of competition at the 2021 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Barton, the 2021 indoor national runner-up in the same event, comfortably secured her spot in Saturday’s final after finishing second in the opening heat after running 2:02.25. Barton’s heat proved to be the fastest of the day, thanks to Arkansas’ Shafiqua Maloney leading the pack through 400m in 58.04 seconds. A series of tactical moves along the backstretch allowed Barton to slide into second with 200m remaining, and the native of Clemson, S.C., cruised down the homestretch to easily secure her spot in Saturday’s final. Clemson last had a woman in the outdoor final of the 800m during the 2015 championships, a meet which saw Natoya Goule finish sixth overall after running 2:05.19.