Tulane duo wrap up men's track & field season at East Regionals
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Tulane's men's track and field athletes Thomas Lynch and Devon Breaux competed valiantly at the NCAA East Regionals in Greensboro, N.C., on Thursday, in their respective events, but neither will advance to the NCAA Nationals next week.
The first two men in Tulane track and field history to compete in an NCAA Regional posted solid numbers in their events – Breaux in the long jump and Lynch in the discus – but the competition was unlike any they have seen so far this season. With the conclusion of their events at the Irwin Belk Track at Aggie Stadium on the campus of North Carolina A&T, the Tulane men's season has now ended.
"It's certainly not the way we hoped the season would end, but I do believe that with this being the first time that Devon and Thomas competed at a meet of this caliber, they both learned a lot from the experience," said Tulane director of track and field Eric Peterson. "Most importantly – and this is something we preach all the time – when you get to a championship meet, it takes an extraordinary effort to be successful. At a minimum, it requires that you perform at the level that you performed at to qualify. Both Thomas and Devon fell a little short of that today, but I still feel that this was a tremendous learning experience for them."
Breaux finished in 24th place out of 48 athletes in the long jump, jumping a distance of 7.14 meters (23' 5.25"). He qualified for the NCAA Regionals with his performance at the Conference USA Championships when he long jumped 7.55 meters (24' 9.25"). His jump at the Regionals was the second best jump he had on the year in seven long jumps. The freshman from Donaldsonville, La., missed the earliest portion of the outdoor track and field season after wrapping up his time with the Tulane football team, where he plays wide receiver.
Lynch notched a toss of 46.94 meters (154' 0") in the discus, placing 44th. The Washington, D.C., native had a stellar season for the team. He qualified for the meet today with a toss of 51.81 meters (170' 0") that he set in late March at the Stanford Invitational. That mark broke his previous personal best, set earlier in the season, that doubled as the best toss in school history.
Tomorrow, sophomore Merritt Van Meter and junior Joanna Lapucha will compete in the pole vault at the NCAA Regionals. Their event is set to begin at 3pm CT.
"Today is a good lesson of what it's going to take (from the pole vaulters on Friday and Estefany Cruz in the triple jump on Saturday)," added Peterson. "Our girls are aware of that, and they are going to be focused on doing the best they can. They are ready to get out there and do what they have to do to qualify for nationals."
A link for live results can be found on the track and field schedule page on TulaneGreenWave.com.
