Pitt’s Desmond Palmer named second-team All-American

Pitt’s Desmond Palmer is now a three-time NCAA Outdoor Track and Field All-American.

Palmer earned second-team All-America honors this season after falling just short of making the men’s 400 meter hurdle finals at the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Wednesday in Eugene, Oregon. The junior finished his semifinal heat in fourth place and seventh-best overall with a time of 50.21, but only the top six qualifiers advanced to the finals.

A two-time ACC 400mH champion, Palmer was a second-team All-American in his first year at Pitt before earning first-team All-America honors last season with an eighth place finish at nationals.

Pitt’s men’s 4×400 meter relay team –– comprised of Palmer, junior Brylan Slay and seniors Donnell Taylor and Chris Tate –– also failed to make the finals after finishing their semifinal heat in eighth place with a time of 3:11.55, but still earned honorable mention All-America honors.

Although no Panthers qualified for the national finals, Pitt head coach Alonzo Webb views this season as a step in the right direction.

“Today did not go as we had planned it,” Webb said in a press release on Wednesday. “However, I am very proud of how far these guys have made it and this is just another step in the process of getting better.”