March 2, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. - Senior Dione Thomas (Jacksonville, Fla.) is this week's Bright House Networks Student-Athlete of the Week. She helped the Knights to a third place finish in the Conference USA Indoor Track and Field Championships, and brought home the individual title for the triple jump.
On the first day of the Championships, which were held at the Yeoman Fieldhouse on the campus of the University of Houston, Thomas finished second in the long jump. Her top jump of 19-4.75 (5.91 meters) fell just shy of first place. The next day first place belonged to her in the triple jump. The UCF school record holder in the event posted a mark of 41-7.0 (12.67 meters) to take first by just three-hundredths of a meter over Ashley May of Southern Miss. With her best effort of the season, Thomas also posted an NCAA provisional qualifying mark.
Thomas was awarded 10 points for her first place finish and eight for her second place finish, providing 18 of the Knights' 86 points for the weekend. The third-place finish for UCF is its highest since joining Conference USA, with the Knights' previous best being seventh in 2006.
UCF begins the 2009 outdoor season with back-to-back home meets, hosting the Black & Gold Challenge on March 21 and the UCF Invitational on March 27-28.
For the latest news on the Knights, log on to UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.