KINGSVILLE, Texas -- University of Charleston's Jack Mastandrea became the first Golden Eagle male to earn All-American status in outdoor track & field by finishing 4th in the NCAA DII Outdoor Track & Field Championships hosted by Texas A&M - Kingsvillie at Javelina Stadium.
The junior from Mooresville, N.C. qualified for both 10,000m and 5,000m events at the championships after posting the 8th fastest time in the 10k and 19th fastest in the 5k. Mastandrea started the championships with his strongest event, the 10,000 meter, on Thursday evening on the hot track at Javelina Stadium. He started strong, running with the lead pack through the first 800 meters before Grand Valley State's Zach Panning broke away from the group. Mastandrea stayed in the chase pack, never dropping below 6th place throughout the duration of the race, churning out an average lap of around 75 seconds. Midway through, Mastandrea found himself leading the chase pack from the 2,800m to the 5,600m mark to keep his goal of becoming UC men's track first All-American intact. He remained in the chase pack for the last 4,400 meters and had enough left in the tank to kick his way to the 4th place finish and earn a spot on the medal stand at the NCAA DII Championships. Mastandrea would finish with a time of 31:07.37 to become UC men's track first All-American.
10,000 Meter Results
After a day off, Mastandrea returned to the track for the 5,000m run but was still feeling the effects of Thursday night's race. He was in contention after the first 2,000 meters but labored the last half of the race to place 21st in the event. The junior ended his championship with a time of 15:28.85
5,000 Meter Results
Mastandrea had quite the first season from University of Charleston:
All-American in Cross Country
Qualified for NCAA DII Indoor Track & Field Championships in 5,000m (13th)
Mountain East Conference Champion (10,000m and 5,000m)
Mountain East Conference Track Athlete of the Year
USTFCCCA All-Atlantic Region (5,000m & 10,000m)
Qualified for NCAA DII Outdoor Track & Field Championship in 10,000m & 5,000m
NCAA DII Outdoor Track & Field All-American in 10,000m (4th)
