University of Tennessee Athletics
Photo by: Cayce Smith/Tennessee Athletics
Four Vols Post First Team All-America Performances At NCAA Championships
June 08, 2024 | Track & Field
EUGENE, Ore. – Tennessee track & field standouts Emmanuel Bynum, Rasheeme Griffith, Ja'Kwan Hale and Christian Parker etched their names into the record books on a warm Friday night in Eugene, Oregon, combining for three First Team All-America performances across two individual events and one relay to wrap up the men's portion of the 2024 NCAA Outdoor Championships.
UT totaled 10 All-America honors on Friday with Yaseen Abdalla, Aron Alvarez Aranda, Grant Campbell and Clement Ducos also earning Second Team acclaim.
Bynum and Hale each accounted for two First Team All-America certificates, placing top-8 in the country in their respective individual NCAA finals and serving as half of UT's school record 4x400-meter relay that took fifth overall. Bynum finished sixth in the 400-meter dash, while Hale took seventh in the 400-meter hurdles.
Lining up for his final 400-meter race as a Tennessee Volunteer, Bynum took one lap around the track in 45.75 seconds to collect his 10th career All-America honor. Tallying his 11th All-America accolade in the 4x400-meter relay, the fifth-year senior from Memphis tied former Vol Willie Gault for the fifth-most All-America honors in UT history.
Hale went out with All-America honors in the 400-meter hurdles for the first time in his career, placing seventh in the final with a time of 49.49. Joining his teammates Ducos and Griffith who are two-time All-Americans in the event, head coach Duane Ross has produced three of the program's six 400-meter hurdles All-Americans in just the last two seasons.
After Ducos sustained an injury in Friday's 400-meter hurdles final, Hale subbed into the 4x400-meter relay lineup and provided a key 44.89-second split on the third leg that helped the Vols finish fifth overall and establish a new school record of 3:01.22. The quartet improved the previous program standard of 3:02.04 that was set two weeks prior at the NCAA East Preliminary Rounds in Lexington, Kentucky.
Despite being unable to finish the 400-meter hurdles final, Ducos was tabbed a Second Team All-American in the event for the second year in a row. The Bordeaux, France, native rounds out his Tennessee career as the school record holder (48.26) and one of three Vols to earn All-America status twice in the 400-meter hurdles (David Patrick, 1981-82; Rasheeme Griffith, 2023-24).
The Vols had a pair of freshman field athletes earn Second Team All-America honors in their NCAA Championship debuts. Rookie standout and Maryville native Grant Campbell cleared 2.12 meters (6-11.5) in the high jump final to tie for 15th overall, while South African stalwart Aron Alvarez Aranda heaved the discus 57.85m (189-9) on his first attempt to take 11th in the national final. Both rookies become the seventh Vol to be named All-Americans in their respective events.
Distance specialist Yaseen Abdalla tabbed a career-best 11th place finish in the men's 5,000-meter, closing the race well into a time of 14:01.54. After placing 12th a year ago in Austin, Abdalla becomes the first Vol to take home All-America honors in the outdoor 5k in back-to-back seasons.
UP NEXT: The 2024 NCAA Outdoor Championships wrap up Saturday evening in Eugene with three event finals on the docket for the Lady Vols. Brianna White and Dennisha Page will compete in the 400-meter (6:32 p.m. ET) and 200-meter (7:07 p.m. ET) finals, and the meet will conclude with UT running the women's 4x400-meter relay at approximately 7:51 p.m. ET.
UT totaled 10 All-America honors on Friday with Yaseen Abdalla, Aron Alvarez Aranda, Grant Campbell and Clement Ducos also earning Second Team acclaim.
Bynum and Hale each accounted for two First Team All-America certificates, placing top-8 in the country in their respective individual NCAA finals and serving as half of UT's school record 4x400-meter relay that took fifth overall. Bynum finished sixth in the 400-meter dash, while Hale took seventh in the 400-meter hurdles.
Lining up for his final 400-meter race as a Tennessee Volunteer, Bynum took one lap around the track in 45.75 seconds to collect his 10th career All-America honor. Tallying his 11th All-America accolade in the 4x400-meter relay, the fifth-year senior from Memphis tied former Vol Willie Gault for the fifth-most All-America honors in UT history.
Hale went out with All-America honors in the 400-meter hurdles for the first time in his career, placing seventh in the final with a time of 49.49. Joining his teammates Ducos and Griffith who are two-time All-Americans in the event, head coach Duane Ross has produced three of the program's six 400-meter hurdles All-Americans in just the last two seasons.
After Ducos sustained an injury in Friday's 400-meter hurdles final, Hale subbed into the 4x400-meter relay lineup and provided a key 44.89-second split on the third leg that helped the Vols finish fifth overall and establish a new school record of 3:01.22. The quartet improved the previous program standard of 3:02.04 that was set two weeks prior at the NCAA East Preliminary Rounds in Lexington, Kentucky.
Despite being unable to finish the 400-meter hurdles final, Ducos was tabbed a Second Team All-American in the event for the second year in a row. The Bordeaux, France, native rounds out his Tennessee career as the school record holder (48.26) and one of three Vols to earn All-America status twice in the 400-meter hurdles (David Patrick, 1981-82; Rasheeme Griffith, 2023-24).
The Vols had a pair of freshman field athletes earn Second Team All-America honors in their NCAA Championship debuts. Rookie standout and Maryville native Grant Campbell cleared 2.12 meters (6-11.5) in the high jump final to tie for 15th overall, while South African stalwart Aron Alvarez Aranda heaved the discus 57.85m (189-9) on his first attempt to take 11th in the national final. Both rookies become the seventh Vol to be named All-Americans in their respective events.
Distance specialist Yaseen Abdalla tabbed a career-best 11th place finish in the men's 5,000-meter, closing the race well into a time of 14:01.54. After placing 12th a year ago in Austin, Abdalla becomes the first Vol to take home All-America honors in the outdoor 5k in back-to-back seasons.
UP NEXT: The 2024 NCAA Outdoor Championships wrap up Saturday evening in Eugene with three event finals on the docket for the Lady Vols. Brianna White and Dennisha Page will compete in the 400-meter (6:32 p.m. ET) and 200-meter (7:07 p.m. ET) finals, and the meet will conclude with UT running the women's 4x400-meter relay at approximately 7:51 p.m. ET.
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