Taylor Sanderson was the lone athlete for men’s track and field on Thursday, concluding the second half of the decathlon and finishing in 16th overall with 6,808 points. The finish marked the end of his first and only appearance in the NCAA Outdoor Championship in Eugene, Ore., entering the meet a redshirt senior.  

His performance earned him second team all-American honors.

Sanderson failed to make it over any height in the pole vault, giving him zero points and his final score no chance of finishing in the top five. Although it was detrimental to his finish, he was still able to perform well in three of his other events.

One of those good performances came in the 110-meter hurdles, where he jumped up three spots in the decathlon standings. He added 895 points to his score with a 14.63 personal-record time. 

He grabbed an additional 710 points with a strong performance in the javelin throw, throwing 138-feet-6-inches for a fifth place finish.

Sanderson ended his day with a personal record in the 1,500-meter run, clocking at 4:31.7, a seven-second improvement from his previous best. It was good for eighth in the event.