Track athletes earn honors at national competition

School records, team titles and coach of the year accolades aside, the NCAA Outdoor Track… School records, team titles and coach of the year accolades aside, the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships gave Pitt’s team a chance to shine individually.

A few of the members took the opportunity and ran with it, literally.

Over the weekend at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Sacramento, Calif., the Panthers put out a stellar showing, earning five separate All-America honors.

Pitt sent eight of its team members to the championships, and for the first time since 2000, returned five All-America honorees. It’s also the first time since 1990 that three men’s track and field competitors finished in the top 10.

Tony Bonura, Sam Bair and Keith Higham brought home the hardware on the men’s side, while Julianna Reed and Maureen McCandless represented the women.

The sophomore Higham, who also qualified for the indoor championships this season, finished eighth in the pole vault with a height of 5.35 meters. This was Higham’s third time as an NCAA qualifier.

Bonura’s honors came in the javelin when his throw of 68.12 meters landed him an eighth-place finish. He achieved the mark on his first throw of the day for his second-consecutive national honor.

In the 1,500 meter-run, Bair’s time of 3:47.00 placed him ninth — eighth among U.S. competitors — for his All-American status. He placed fourth in the same event at the Big East Championships and was also an indoor qualifier in the mile earlier this season.

The junior Reed received her first All-America honor with a time of 58.25 in the 400-meter hurdles. It was the 13th-best time overall, but ranked her among the top eight of U.S. competitors for the national honor.

Rounding out the Panthers’ All-Americans was McCandless, the senior from Bensalem, Pa. This is the second time McCandless has achieved this honor.

Her seventh-place finish in the 5,000 meters with a time of 16:14.10 earned her third top-eight finish at the NCAA Championships and second this year. She finished third in the same event at the indoor championships in March.

McCandless holds the school record in the event, in addition to eight other records at Pitt. And though she is a senior who will be leaving her Panther teammates, she’ll be remembered on campus for quite some time.

Earlier this year, McCandless had her named etched in Pitt’s prestigious Varsity Walk.

The events concluded a stellar outdoor year for the Panthers. After winning its second consecutive Big East Championship, Pitt captured its fourth Eastern College Athletic Conference title in a row.

What’s even more impressive is that each of the men and women’s teams recorded top-10 finishes in the NCAA Regional Championships — a region that includes more than 100 schools annually.