Sophomore All-American earns weekly honor with pair of wins on opening weekend
Thomas, who earns the indoor field award for the second time in his career, posted a pair of first place finishes for Stonehill at the season-opening Jay Carisella Invitational on Saturday, provisionally qualifying for the NCAA Division II Indoor Championships in both events. The indoor and outdoor All-American for the high jump as a freshman, picked up right where he left off in a spectacular freshman campaign by winning the 55-meter high hurdles with his time of 7.59-seconds – nearly two tenths of a second ahead of unattached runner Dominic Devaud in second place (7.78). Thomas qualified for the final with the top qualifying time of 7.59-seconds as well in the preliminary round. He completed his double with a first place effort in the high jump by clearing 6-feet, 11.75-inches (2.13-meters), just .02-meters shy of automatic qualifying standard for nationals.
Thomas has earned field athlete of the week honors a combined three times in his career between the indoor and outdoor seasons and collected Freshman of the Week honors 12 times last season, combining indoor, outdoor and track and field selections.
Thomas enjoyed a record-breaking indoor season as a freshman at Stonehill, qualifying for the NCAA Championships for both the high jump and 60-meter hurdles. He earned All-America honors with his third-place finish in the high jump (6'11.5") in Albuquerque, N.M. Thomas posted the top indoor high jump in Division II last winter, clearing a program-record 7'2.25" to win the New England Indoor Championship. He also established the program-record for the 55-meter hurdles with his time of 7.45-seconds in placing second at the New England Championships, ranking third nationally for that event entering the Indoor Championships. Thomas was named the NE-10 Indoor Male Athlete of the Year and Most Valuable Athlete at the NE-10 Championships.
Thomas, qualified for nationals in both the high jump and 110-meter high hurdles during the outdoor season. He didn't finish lower than third for the high jump in any of the eight outdoor events he was entered in for Stonehill last spring, posting wins at the Skyhawk Invitational and New Balance Boston Twilight Invitational to go with a second New England title. He won the 110-meter hurdles event in six of the eight outdoor meets he was entered this spring, posting wins at the Bryant Invitational, George Davis Invite, Skyhawk Invitational and New Balance Boston Twilight event to go with his Northeast-10 Conference and New England Championship performances. Thomas was named the NE-10 Male Freshman of the Year for the outdoor season.
Thomas, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Men's East Region Indoor and Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year as a freshman, placed fourth for the high jump at the USA Junior Outdoor Track & Field Championships at Drake Stadium in June, clearing a school-record height of 7'1.50".
Stonehill is back in action on Saturday when it participates in the Harvard Invitational.
