Four Track & Field Athletes Receive All-American Honors
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Four Mississippi State track and field athletes received All-American accolades from the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association for their performances this season.
“We continue every day to improve our program and these athletes are a huge part of that,” MSU coach Steve Dudley said. “They deserve every bit of this recognition as we strive to take the program to the next level. Each of these four athletes worked hard throughout the entire season.”
Senior Erica Bougard, who was the 2015 NCAA Indoor pentathlon runner-up, was tabbed first-team All-American in the pentathlon and the 60m hurdles. Bougard finished sixth overall in the 60m hurdles at the NCAA Indoor Championships with a time of 8.25. She also earned second-team honors in the long jump. All four seasons Bougard has competed for MSU she has received All-American accolades for the pentathlon.
Also receiving first team All-American honors was junior Brandon McBride in the 800m run. At the indoor championships last weekend, McBride finished fourth with a time of 1:47.16. Earlier this season McBride recorded a school record in the 800m run with a time of 1:46.80. This is the second year in a row McBride has received this honor.
Senior Ebony Brinker received second-team All-American accolades for the triple jump. At the championships, Brinker finished 13th with a leap of 41-00.25. This was Brinker’s first appearance in the indoor championships. To begin the 2015 season, Brinker broke the school record in the triple jump with a leap of 42-04.25.
Receiving honorable mention All-American honors was sophomore Rhianwedd Price. Price participated in the NCAA Championship mile run and originally qualified for finals with a time of 4:36.39, but was disqualified for a minor lane violation in the preliminaries. Price ran a personal-best in the mile run at the 2015 SEC Championships, where she placed second with a time of 4:32.74.
The Mississippi State track and field teams will begin the 2015 outdoor campaign this Friday at the Alabama Relays.
For more information on the MSU track and field teams visit HailState.com or follow on Twitter (@HailStateTF).