By Tom Schott
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Women's outdoor track & field put together the top showing in school history at the NCAA Championships, which wrapped up June 9. Purdue finished eighth with 34 points, both program bests.
Six Boilermakers combined to earn nine first team All-American glories: sophomore Chloe Abbott (400 meters and 4x400-meter relay), senior Symone Black (400-meter hurdles and 4x400-meter relay), senior Savannah Carson (long jump), senior Devynne Charlton (100-meter hurdles), senior Jahneya Mitchell (4x400-meter relay), and senior Brionna Thomas (400 meters and 4x400-meter relay).
Charlton was the team's top individual finisher, placing second in the 100 hurdles with a time of 12.77 seconds, merely 0.07 of a second shy of Jasmine Camacho-Quinn of Kentucky. The 4x400 relay also was runner-up with its second-best clocking of the year at 3:27.13, only 0.06 of a second behind Southern California.
Charlton subsequently earned Big Ten Women's Track Athlete of the Year honors for the second straight year.
Thomas and Abbott took third and fifth in the 400 meters, Black fourth in the 400 hurdles and Carson sixth in the long jump.
Junior Micaela Hazlewood was a second team All-American in the discus and classmate Janae' Moffitt honorable mention in the high jump.
On the men's side, sophomore Ashmon Lucas was a first team All-American in the discus with a sixth-place finish, while classmates Jaret Carpenter and Waseem Williams earned second team honors in the 5,000 meters and 100 meters, respectively. The 4x100-meter relay team of senior Gerald McGee, junior Malcolm Dotson, junior Shawndail McLaren and Williams earned honorable mention recognition.
Trio of Boilermakers Taken in MLB Draft
Three Purdue baseball players were selected in the 2018 Major League Baseball Draft:
* Tanner Andrews, pitcher, 10th round, Miami Marlins
* Nick Dalesandro, catcher, 10th round, Arizona Diamondbacks
* Jacson McGowan, first baseman, 11th round, Tampa Bay Rays
The three draft picks match the total Purdue had from 2013 to 2017.
The Boilermakers finished the 2018 season with a 38-21 record, good for the second-most wins in school history.
Thomas, Thompson Earn Outstanding Sportsmanship Award
Brionna Thomas of track & field and P.J. Thompson of men's basketball were named Purdue's recipients of the 2018 Big Ten Outstanding Sportsmanship Award. Twenty-eight student-athletes from around the conference were selected for the honor from a group of more than 350 candidates.
The student-athletes chosen are individuals who have distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior. The individuals must be fair and respectful to their opponent and, in addition, be enthusiastic about the game, enjoy playing it and, win or lose, do their absolute best at all times. The recipients also shall be active on their campus communities. In addition, the student-athletes must be in good academic standing and must have demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting.
Men's Basketball Alumni Game Set for Aug. 4
Purdue men's basketball will stage an Alumni Game on Aug. 4 at Mackey Arena.
Tickets are being reserved in the premium seating areas for men's and women's basketball premium-seat holders for $10 each. On June 18, the seats will be offered to John Purdue Club members before going on sale to the public (if available) June 26. All other tickets will be general-admission seating free of charge.
Participating players and coaches will be announced in the coming weeks.
Etcetera
Marat Amaltdinov is the first Purdue swimmer to be recognized among the nation's top all-around student-athletes multiple times in his career. Amaltdinov was selected a third team Academic All-America honoree by the College Sports Information Directors of America. He was a second team selection in 2017 ââ'¬¦ Outfielder Ben Nisle earned freshman All-American honors from Collegiate Baseball. For the season, Nisle batted .304 with 12 doubles, seven home runs and 43 RBI. His .344 batting average in Big Ten play paced Purdue and was the best by a Boilermaker since 2015 ââ'¬¦ Senior Steele Johnson and junior Brandon Loschiavo placed fifth for USA Diving in synchronized 10-meter at the FINA Diving World Cup on June 8 in Wuhan, China. The duo thereby qualified for the 2019 FINA Diving World Series ââ'¬¦ Junior Christian Brunner was the top finisher among Purdue wrestlers at the U23 Freestyle World Team Trials on June 3 in Toledo, Ohio, placing fourth at 92 kg ââ'¬¦ The 2018 soccer schedule has been announced ââ'¬¦ Women's basketball will host Miami in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge on Nov. 29 ââ'¬¦ Recent Purdue Athletics hires include Lacee' Carmon-Johnson as assistant director - academic support services, Scott Collins as assistant golf professional, Korey Keiser as learning specialist, Spenser McElhoney as assistant ticket manager, Gavin Roberts (Purdue football player 2008-12) as assistant director of strength and conditioning, Tyson Street as assistant director of football recruiting, and Olivia Villain as operations and sport sports coordinator ââ'¬¦ Former Purdue men's golfer Tyler Duncan (2009-12) finished tied for sixth at the U.S. Open Sectional qualifier in Germantown, Tennessee, to earn one of 11 available spots to compete in the 118th U.S. Open Championship, which are taking place June 14 to 17 at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, New York ââ'¬¦ Volleyball alumna Danielle Cuttino (2014-17) signed a contract with the Pomi Casalmaggiore Volleyball Club in Italy ââ'¬¦ Tracking the Boilermakers will return July 6 ââ'¬¦ Happy start of summer.