PISCATAWAY, N.J. – University of Louisville track and field’s Sam Bombaugh won his third BIG EAST title this year, capturing the hammer throw crown on day one of the BIG EAST Outdoor Championships on the campus of Rutgers University in Piscataway, N.J.
Bombaugh, who won both conference titles at the indoor championships, secured Friday’s crown with a toss of 61.73m/202-6. He became just the second athlete in program history to win at least three conference throwing titles in one year, with Arthur Turland achieving the feat first in 2007 (weight throw, discus, and javelin). Bombaugh also is Louisville’s second hammer throw champion, only capturing the victory after Turland won it in 2006.
On the women’s side, Louisville had three top-eight finishes in the hammer throw competition. Patrice Gates finished runner-up behind a six-foot career-best throw of 59.51m/195-3. Amashi Kendall, last year’s champion in the event, took third, and Hannah Baker contributed two team points with a seventh-place showing. Similarly, Louisville’s women also are in first place in the team standings, boasting 16 points.
The Cardinals return to action on Saturday, May 4, for the second of the three-day meet. The men’s shot put is Louisville’s first event of the day, and it starts at 11 a.m. at the Bauer Track and Field Complex.