University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Fournette Faces Nation's Best in Des Moines
6/8/2011 7:55:00 PM | Track and Field
Albert Fournette will be the first University of Louisiana athlete to compete in the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships since 2004. On Friday evening, the sophomore will participate in the shot put with a scheduled first throw at 5:30 p.m. CT at Drake Stadium in Des Monies, Iowa.
Fournette broke the school record in the shot put two times this year. The New Orleans native originally broke a 26-year old record with a toss of 57-7 ¾ (17.57m) at the Leon Johnson NSU Invitational on April 19.
At the NCAA East Preliminaries, Fournette placed 10th out of 46 competitors with a throw of 59-3 (18.07m) at the prelim site in Bloomington, Ind., to qualify for the NCAA National Championships.
"It's an honor and true privilege to be able to come out here and compete at Nationals," said Fournette. "Coach (David) Bellar has taught me the spin technique and the practice is paying off."
The sophomore is a two-time All-Sun Belt shot put thrower, including a runner-up finish behind teammate Jacob Domingue at the Sun Belt Championships on May 14.
"He had a practice session out here earlier and is throwing really well," said UL volunteer assistant coach David Bellar. "We are hoping he's going to improve and come out with a new school record."
Live results and video of the meet will be available at NCAA.com. Live television coverage of Friday's events will be provided from 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. on the CBS College Sports Network. Ian Eagle will provide the play-by-play, along with analysis and interviews from Larry Rawson, Carol Lewis and Dan O'Brien.
-- Ragin' Cajuns --
