May 20, 2002

ATLANTA, Ga. - At the Georgia Tech Invitational, track and field senior Josh Jones set the Samford record in the decathlon, scoring 6,331 points in the final collegiate meet of his career.

Jones finished ninth out of 15 competitors, but Tennessee's Stephen Harris and South Carolina's Fred Townsend were the only collegiate athletes to finish ahead of Jones. Harris, an SEC champion, finished second in the NCAA Championships last season in the decathlon and Townsend was the third-place finisher in the 2002 SEC Championships. Chad Smith, a 30-year old Olympic competitor, won the decathlon with 8,133 points.

Jones' effort was the second time this season that he set the school mark, as he scored 6,275 points at the Alabama Relays, March 21-24. He finished ahead of Mississippi State's Daniel Hunter, who finished fourth at the SEC Championships, and also topped two of the top three finishers of the ACC Decathlon.

Below are Jones' marks in each event of the decathlon:

100 Meters - 11.77

400 Meters - 51.72

High Jump - 5'08.75"

Long Jump - 20'07.75"

Shot Put - 38'04.75"

1500 Meters - 5:05.34

110 Meter Hurdles - 16.46

Pole Vault - 13'11.25"

Discus - 126'02"

Javelin - 153'08"