Marquette University issued the following announcement on June 10.
Marquette University senior Joe Keys earned NCAA Second Team All-America recognition with a 12th-place finish in the men's decathlon at the 2021 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships at Hayward Field on Thursday evening.
"I'm so proud of Joe," MU head coach Bert Rogers said. "He worked very hard to earn this, was ready for the moment and really made the most of it. He will take so much from this experience. I'm excited to see the heights he will reach next year (with his final year of outdoor eligibility)."
The Downers Grove, Illinois native posted a 10-event total of 7,479 points with four individual event personal bests over the last two days. He sat 14th at the conclusion of Wednesday's five events with 3,870 points and becomes MU's first NCAA Outdoor All-American since Wally Ellenson earned first team honors with a fifth-place finish in the men's high jump in 2015.
Keys began Thursday with a 10th-place finish in the 110-meter hurdles in 14.94 seconds and added a pair of top-six finishes to close out the Championships in the javelin and 1,500-meter run. Those final two events helped him climb the overall standings after an 18th-place finish in the discus and a 15th-place finish in the pole vault. He placed sixth in the javelin with a toss of 57.06 meters and finished as runner-up in the 1,500 with a personal-best mark of 4:26.83.
Keys kicked off the NCAAs on Wednesday with a narrow personal-best of 11.13 seconds in the 100-meter dash to earn 832 points and place 14th. He then jumped up to sixth in the overall standings after a fourth-place finish in the long jump, scoring 864 points, with a jump of 7.21 meters (23 feet, 8 inches). Keys capped off the first day of events by running a blazing 49.84 in the 400-meter dash, winning his heat and taking eighth place overall. His time was also a personal-best, topping his previous record of 49.92.
He qualified for the national meet with a career-best effort at the Hurricane Alumni Invitational, hosted by the University of Miami on April 10. He set a school record with a total of 7,537 and was seeded 17th entering the meet.
Keys was named a 2020 USTFCCCA Indoor All-American in the heptathlon in 2020 and was a NCAA Indoor qualifier in the event, which was canceled due to COVID. He is the Marquette record holder in the heptathlon and the decathlon, and ranks in Marquette's top-10 career lists in five other individual events.
OVERALL
12th, 7,479 points - NCAA Second Team All-America
BY EVENT
100 meters (832 pts): 14th, 11.13 seconds (PR)
Long Jump (864 pts): 4th, 7.21 meters (23-8)
Shot Put (647 pts): 18th, 12.67 meters (41-7) (PR)
High Jump (705 pts): 14th, 1.89 meters (6-2.25)
400 meters (822 pts): 8th, 49.84 (PR)
110 hurdles (857 pts): 10th, 14.94 seconds
Discus (587 pts): 18th, 36.14 meters (118-7)
Pole Vault (705 pts): 15th, 4.31 meters (14-1.75)
Javelin (694 pts): 6th, 57.06 meters (187-2)
1,500 meters (766 pts): 2nd, 4:26.83 (PR)
Original source can be found here.
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