La’Derrick Ward earned SIUE’s best finish at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships Thursday with fourth place in the long jump at the University of Oregon’s Heyward Field.
Ward, a junior from Alorton, used his second jump to eventually secure fourth overall. He leaped 24 feet, 9.75 inches (7.56 meters).
“It was a good meet,” said Ward. “It would have been better to win, but I competed hard.”
Florida’s Marquis Dendy turned in the top jump of the event with a 26-3 (8.00m) leap on his final jump, outdistancing runner-up Willie Alexander, of Long Beach State, who jumped 25-4.5 (7.73m).
Ward opened the event with a foul and had just two more jumps to make a qualifying mark for the finals.
“It really was just to get a mark on the board,” said Ward. “The wind was just really crazy.”
He competed in the first of two flights and had a lengthy wait before learning if he would make the finals.
“I definitely wanted to go further,” said Ward. “It was a long layoff going from the first round to the finals. I was trying to keep my focus going into the finals.”
It also marked the end of the collegiate season for the SIUE men’s team, a season that included Ward leading the nation in the long jump. It also saw the emergence of sprinter Braxton Klavins and freshman Julian Harvey, who qualified for three events at the NCAA West Preliminaries.
The outdoor season is not completely over for Ward and Harvey. Ward will venture to the U.S. Nationals in Sacramento, Calif., June 29. Harvey will compete July 5-6, in Eugeneat the U.S. Junior Nationals.
SIUE has one more day of competition left at the national championship. Jatavia Wright, SIUE’s hopeful in the women’s triple jump, will compete today at 5:25 p.m.