NEW ORLEANS, La. --- Moravian College senior jumper Kristopher Joint has been selected as the 2014 United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Division III Mideast Region Male Field Athlete of the Year. Award winners were determined by a vote of USTFCCCA member coaches.
Joint was named the Landmark Conference Field Athlete for the second consecutive year on March 1 after winning the conference title in the triple jump for the fourth straight year and the championship in the long jump for the second year in a row. Joint also earned Landmark All-Conference Second Team honors with a runner-up finish in the high jump.
Last weekend, Joint won the triple jump at the ECAC Division III Indoor Championships with a school Landmark and ECAC meet record of 15.09 meters (49 feet, 6 ¼ inches). He was also second in the long jump at the ECAC Championships.
"Kris' performance the last two weekends made us think he had a chance at this prestigious award," stated Head Coach Jesse Baumann. "Scoring 27 points at the Landmark Championships and setting an ECAC meet record in the triple jump are remarkable accomplishments that certainly made him a worthy candidate. I'm glad to see him honored with this as a senior. He's put in a tremendous amount of hard work to get to where he's at this season."
Joint is making his second trip to the NCAA Indoor Championships this weekend. A year ago, he earned All-America honors with a sixth place finish in the long jump, and he also placed 10th in the triple jump. Joint will be competing in the pair of events for the second consecutive year. He is entering the meet ranked 10th in the long jump with a season best leap of 7.17 meters (23 feet, 6 ¼ inches) at the Landmark Championships hosted by Susquehanna University, and he will compete in the event on Friday, March 14 at 11:00 a.m. Central Daylight Time.
Joint is second in the country in the triple jump entering the NCAA meet with his season-best mark of 15.09 meters that he jumped last Friday at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center in Roxbury Crossing, Massachusetts. The triple jump is scheduled for Saturday, March 15 beginning at 1:30 p.m. CDT.
To see all of the USTFCCCA Regional Award Winners, visit http://www.ustfccca.org/2014/03/featured/diii-indoor-track-field-region-award-winners-announced.
