April 24, 2012
TEMPE – Arizona State University track and field senior Chris Benard earned his second Pac-12 Conference Field Athlete of the Week honor in three weeks, the conference announced on Tuesday afternoon, while the Arizona State men reached their highest USTFCCCA computer ranking in school history as well.
Benard broke the Arizona State record in the triple jump on Saturday at the Mt. SAC Relays with a leap of 16.74m (54-11.25) to take second in the Elite section of the event in Walnut, Calif. The jump downed Deon Mayfield's 30-year-old record in the event of 16.72m (64-10.50) and placed Benard in the No. 1 spot in the nation in 2012, as well.
Additionally, the mark placed Benard tied for ninth on the Pac-12's all-time descending order list in the event and is the best jump in the Conference since USC's Joseph Kapek jumped 17.12m (56-02.00) in 2003. With the jump, Benard joined Kapek as just the second jumper in the Pac-12 to jump over 54 feet, 10 inches in the past 24 year.
The jump also factored into Tuesday USTFCCCA computer rankings release as the Sun Devil men climbed five spots to the No. 3 spot in the nation, the highest computer ranking for ASU in school history and the four-year history of the current rankings system.
The ASU women also climbed six spots to the No. 10 position in the latest rankings, marking the first time both teams have been ranked in the top 10 in the computer rankings since the final week of the 2009 season where the men were fourth and the women sat 10th.
The Sun Devils will return to action this weekend at the annual ASU-UA-NAU Double Dual in Tucson, Ariz., where the team will compete head-to-head with rival Arizona. ASU will enter the weekend having won 19 of the last 22 matchups in the dual between the men and the women since 2001.