Rivera Earns All-American Honors in Track and Field
The record-breaking indoor track and field season for Luis Rivera ’16 culminated with an All-American performance in the 35-pound weight throw in March at the NCAA Division III Indoor Championships at the JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Rivera became the Golden Flyers’ first male field All-American as he finished in sixth place with a school-record heave of 19.29 meters (63 feet, 3-1/2 inches). The top eight finishers are named All-Americans. It marked the sixth time this winter that Rivera has broken his own school record.
“He was pretty excited,” says Nazareth Head Coach James Goss. “The first couple of throws he was getting the nerves out, then on the third throw he really nailed it.”
Rivera had throws of 17.12 and 17.95 meters before nailing his record-breaking throw to enter the finals in fourth place. He dropped to sixth after the finals, but ended up “finishing exactly where he was seeded,” says Goss. “This had to be one of the strongest fields they’ve ever had for this event. And Luis was the only non-senior on the victory podium.”
Nazareth’s Taylor Pierson ’16 also competed for the Golden Flyers in the women’s long jump and finished 15th with a leap of 5.14 meters (16 feet, 10-1/2 inches). She finished in fifth place last season.
Luis Rivera '16