Clemson’s Kautz, Magidi, Richards Earn All-America Honors

June 11, 2005

SACRAMENTO, CA – Three members of the Clemson men’s track and field team earned All-America honors on Friday evening at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Itay Magidi captured his second such honor, while Scott Kautz and Ronald Richards claimed their first All-America certificates. Also in action for the Tigers on Friday, Jason Bell competed in the triple jump qualifying round. Clemson completes competition at this year’s national meet with six points, and currently stands in 24th-place in the team race.

Magidi, a sophomore from Yavne, Israel, improved on his personal-best and Israeli National Record time in the 3000m steeplechase, crossing the finish line in 8:34.12 en route to a seventh-place finish. He concludes his sophomore campaign ranked second on Clemson’s all-time list in the steeplechase, and is the first Tiger to earn multiple All-America honors in the event.

In the 100m final, Richards captured his first All-America accolade with a fifth-place finish in the event. The senior from Alexandria, VA, completed the race in 10.38 to become the first Tiger to finish among the top-eight since 2002.

Scott Kautz, a junior from Charleston, WV, recorded a time of career-best time of 50.24 in the semifinals of the 400m hurdles. He missed advancing to the finals of the event by a mere five-hundredths of one second, but earns All-America distinction as one of the top-eight Americans in the event. Kautz is the sixth Tiger to earn All-America honors in the event, and the first since 2000. With his time on Friday, Kautz moves into fifth on the Tigers’ all-time list in the intermediate hurdles.

In the qualifying round of the triple jump, sophomore Jason Bell recorded a mark of 49’4.25″, but will not advance to the finals of the event. He completes his second year as as the East Region runner-up and a NCAA qualifier indoor and outdoor. Bell ranks third on Clemson’s career list in the outdoor triple jump with his mark of 51’6.25″.