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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - IUPUI men's track standout
Robert Murphy continued his brilliance on Friday night (May 27), finishing fourth in his heat and 15th overall in the 3,000m steeplechase at the NCAA East Regional, hosted by the University of North Florida at Hodges Stadium.
Murphy shattered his own school record, spinning a time of 8:47.87, barely missing a spot in this year's National Championships in Eugene, Ore.. He finished just more than a second behind Virginia's Will Gray, who placed third in the race. The top three in each of the three races earned automatic spots and the three remaining top times were given wild card berths.
With a fourth-place finish in the first of three heats, Murphy and the coaching staff played the waiting game, only to see the hopes dashed after a quick second heat.
However, disappointment wasn't part of the equation.
Murphy started his race by filing to the back of a tightly packed race before maneuvering his way towards the middle. His strength and racing instincts were undeniable though as a well-time move helped him steadily negotiate his way to a fourth-place finish.
"I had a good feeling about the race beforehand," Murphy said. "More than anything, I'm happy I achieved my goal of a new PR. I didn't know exactly what to expect from the race itself, but overall, I'm happy."
"Robert ran great. He came in here ranked like 40th overall and leaves here 15th and just seconds away from qualifying for Oregon," Head Coach
Chuck Koeppen said. "Honestly, I've never seen the kid run a bad race.
"He's had an outstanding year and I'm anxious to see what comes next for him next year."
Friday's race capped a year of firsts for the Warsaw, Ind.-native. He claimed four Summit League individual titles between the indoor and outdoor championships, including collecting the indoor Championship MVP honors. Before he toed the line on Friday, he was already IUPUI's first-ever NCAA Regional participant as the program is still in its infancy.
He and his teammates will take some much needed time off before returning to training for cross country later this summer.
