June 10, 2013
NEW ORLEANS - Four San Diego State athletes were named All-Americans by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), the USTFCCCA announced today. Honors are awarded for performances at the final site of the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, which were held last weekend in Eugene, Ore.
Juniors Shanieka Thomas and Allison Reaser earned first-team USTFCCCA All-American honors in the triple jump and heptathlon, respectively, while freshman Nicole Oudenaarden (heptathlon) and senior Alex Evans (triple jump) garnered honorable-mention accolades.
First-team USTFCCCA All-American honors are awarded to those who earn any portion of a team point at the national championships or reach and eight-entrant final. Second-team All-America honors are handed out to those whose final placing in the national meet range from ninth to 16th-place and honorable-mention accolades go to those who participated at the final site, but did not place in the meet's top 16.
Thomas became the fifth national champion in program history by winning the triple jump with a leap of 46 feet, 4 ¾ inches (14.14 meters). Thomas, who was seeded first heading into the event with her school record, Mountain West record and MW meet-record jump of 46-05.25 (14.15m) at the MW Championships on May 11, went 44-04.50 (13.52m), foul and 44-09.75 (13.66m) in the first flight. She then posted the winning leap of 46-04.75 (14.14m) on her fourth attempt and followed with 46-02.50 (14.08m) and 45-07.75 (13.91m) on her final two jumps. Four of her six attempts would have won the competition.
Thomas is now a four-time first-team USTFCCCA All-American (2012-13 outdoor, 2012-13 indoor) and a one-time second-team USTFCCCA All-American (2011 indoor).
Reaser, meanwhile, set a school and Mountain West record in the heptathlon with 5,813 points en route to finishing eighth out of 24 entrants. Reaser excelled in the track events, taking second in the 100-meter hurdles in 13.30 seconds, which was tied for the seventh-fastest time in school history, and third in the 200 (wind-aided 23.88) and 800 (2:12.08). She also came in 10th in the shot put (39-03.75 (11.98m)), 14th in the javelin throw (124-00 (37.81m)), 15th in the long jump (19-00.00 (5.79m)) and 20th (tied) in the high jump (5-03.00 (1.60m)).
It was Reaser's second straight first-team USTFCCCA All-American award after garnering honorable-mention accolades as a freshman in 2011.
Oudenaarden came in 23rd out of the 24 entrants in the heptathlon with 4,971 points, despite failing to clear a height Thursday in the high jump and getting zero points. It was her first-ever USTFCCCA All-American award.
Evans finished 24th in the triple jump at 40-06.75 (12.46m) to earn honorable-mention USTFCCCA All-American accolades. Last year, Evans was a second-team USTFCCCA All-American in the event after taking 14th.
The performances of Thomas, Reaser, Oudenaarden and Evans helped San Diego State total 11.00 points for the meet, which tied Auburn for 23rd place. It was SDSU's second straight top-25 team finish.
The season isn't over for the Aztecs yet as Reaser, Oudenaarden and Thomas will represent their country at the national championships. Reaser will compete in the heptathlon at the USA Championships from June 20-21, Oudenaarden in the heptathlon at the Canada Championships from June 21-22 and Thomas in the triple jump at the Jamaica Outdoor Championships on June 23. Additionally, Whitney Ashley, who won the discus throw for San Diego State at last year's NCAA Championships, will compete in the discus at the USA Championships on June 23.
2013 USTFCCCA All-Americans
First Team
Shanieka Thomas, Jr., triple jump (first place)
Allison Reaser, Jr., heptathlon (eighth place)
Honorable Mention
Nicole Oudenaarden, Fr., heptathlon (23rd place)
Alex Evans, Sr., triple jump (24th place)