4 Huskies Hit the National Stage in Eugene Wednesday

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STORRS, Conn. - With how the past few seasons have been going for the UConn track & field program, it should not surprise anyone how well the 2023-24 athletes have been doing to finish the season with a cherry on top. In fact, get ready to see four Huskies continue to propel at the highest level at the 2024 NCAA track and field championships in Eugene, Ore., on June 5-8 at Hayward Field. 

Four athletes; (Travis Snyder, Diarmuid O'Connor, A'liyah Thomas, Chloe Thomas) will take the national stage this week beginning on Wednesday, June 5. All four qualified at the east region first round in Lexington, Ky.  

The Huskies continue to find success with another fullfilled indoor and outdoor season. At the BIG EAST Outdoor Championships, UConn earned its third-straight combined season sweep in the conference including 11 individual winners and a near conference record for the men in total points with 287.5 points.  

So, to say the Huskies had a great season is a huge understatement.  

To start the competition, senior pole vaulter from Saco, Maine Travis Snyder, will take the field on the first day at 8 p.m. ET. With much anticipation, Snyder is not just looking to make it to nationals, he is looking to make a big splash in Oregon. Snyder is gearing up for a strong mark beginning with mental preparation. 

"I was Top-12 at the first-round qualifiers, and it meant a lot to me," said Snyder. "I have been mentally preparing and just keeping it simple down to the small steps of the event." 

In the regular season, Snyder broke the outdoor school record in the pole vault with a mark of 5.46 meters (17' 11.25") at the UConn Northeast Challenge. Snyder placed first twice in the outdoor season and was awarded BIG EAST Outdoor Men's Field Athlete of the Week. 

The last pole vaulter to make it to nationals was 2-time qualifier Craig Hunter back in 2018 who placed fourth overall. Snyder comes ready to face all challenges and stick to his training. 

Following up with that is Cork, Ireland native and junior transfer Diarmuid O'Connor. O'Connor experienced a bumpy ride in his first year at UConn when he arrived in January of this season. O'Connor came down with an injury that would restrict him from getting to his peak performances. Despite the injury, the decathlete came back in the outdoor season ready to compete.  

At the BIG EAST Outdoor Championships O'Connor nailed down the 20th best score total in the nation with 7,610 points making him second all-time in UConn program history.  

O'Connor got solid results to hit in just the right time. 

"I was really relieved about everything," said O'Connor admittedly. "The preparation clicked at the right time. It was a bit of a rush to get that score with the injury, so it was a last chance opportunity and to do it at conference was sweet. Now, I want to improve on that and try for an even bigger score." 

The last UConn decathlete to qualify for nationals was Jordan Torney in 2021. So, after three years O'Connor has a chance to get back to where UConn left off. 

For the women, they are riding on a bigger accomplishment to be proud of entering competition week. The last time there was a UConn woman qualifier at nationals was five years ago when Kat Surin took on the 400 meters and Susan Aneno competed in the 800. Before that, five women qualified in 2013 to make it the most women qualification from UConn.  

Although a remarkable season for the women, two athletes knew from the very beginning of the season the expectation was to get to nationals. 

Junior long jumper from Linden, N.J., A'liyah Thomas will take the national stage on Thursday with confidence to get off to a great start using her techniques from training. Thomas withstood a tough injury preventing her from competing in nationals last year, so it is fair to say she wants this chance to compete badly. 

"I feel great," said Thomas. "I have been preparing for this since last year since I hurt myself at the NCAA First Round Qualifiers during the hurdles and I slit my knee open. I was fourth in the region going into the first rounds last year so I knew I could really do something here and make it to nationals. Making it here this year, I wanted revenge, and I came back for it and I'm happy with what I did this season." 

Thomas will join Carol Galloway in 1985 and Cheryle Brantle in 1992 as the only woman long jumper to make it to nationals.  

Like the long jumper, Dundas, Ontario native Chloe Thomas battled with finding the right training to get her to the point of qualification. Thomas had to take a step back to move forward with her work ethic. 

"I'm just grateful that I was able to stay healthy and put together a really good year coming," said Thomas. "After coming back from the NCAA cross country championships, I knew I really wanted to get to another championship. So, I sat down with coach in January and redshirted the indoor season to build a massive base and be very intentional with my training all year. I'm very glad to see it all happen." 

And her training went according to plan as she earned herself two school records in the outdoor season in the 1,500m and the 5,000m. Thomas will now point her focus toward the 5,000m at nationals in Eugene. 

Thomas enters the competition as the only woman 5k qualifier from UConn. A major milestone and momentum push for Thomas to clock a strong time. 

All these qualifications and strong marks revolve around wonderful execution and game plans set by the coaches. Director of Track & Field Beth Alford Sullivan has seen immediate success in her two years at the helm.  

With three qualifiers on the men's side last year, UConn now has four athletes going this year. On top of that, the Huskies have earned eight conference titles. Alford-Sullivan who helped lead the first men's indoor qualifier in nine years also helped lead Chloe Thomas to her second NCAA qualifier in the same athletic year. Alford-Sullivan earned Regional Men's Coach of the Year in indoors and the coaching staff have won their fourth straight coaching staff of the year award.  

Now, all eyes are on the prize... or the national stage; whatever fits your perspective. 

Catch all the action beginning on Wednesday, June 5. The NCAA Track & Field Championships will be aired on ESPN2 starting at 7:30 p.m. ET.