Rice decathlete Ivy reaches new mark
Former Albany Lion Luke Ivy continued his successful collegiate track and field career earlier last month, recording a personal best score and helping Rice University score team points at the 2026 American Athletic Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships held May 14-16 in Denton.
Ivy, a 2022 graduate of Albany High School, placed seventh in the decathlon with a personal best total of 6,428 points, earning points for the Rice men’s track and field team.
The performance was especially noteworthy considering Ivy was rehabbing a stress fracture in his pelvis just three months earlier.
During the two-day competition, Ivy recorded a season best in the 100-meter dash, tied his personal best in the shot put, and posted personal bests in the high jump, 110-meter hurdles and pole vault. He also recorded a season best in the javelin and finished first in the long jump competition among the decathlon participants, missing his personal best mark by only .02 meters.
Ivy has steadily developed into a contributor for the Owls since committing to Rice during the spring of his senior year at Albany High School in 2022.
While competing for the Albany Lions, Ivy qualified for the state track meet in the triple jump and advanced to the regional level as part of the 4x100, 4x200 and 4x400 relay teams. He also qualified for the area meet in the 800-meter run and long jump.
As a senior, Ivy posted marks of 43 feet, 8 inches in the triple jump and 21 feet in the long jump while recording a 51.5-second split in the 4x400 relay.
In addition to track and field, Ivy was a five-sport athlete at Albany High School. He earned all-district honors in football, basketball and baseball, while also competing in tennis. Ivy qualified for the regional tennis tournament three times in boys doubles and graduated as the valedictorian of the Albany High School Class of 2022 with a perfect 4.0 grade point average.
Ivy is the son of Paul and Ginny Ivy. College athletics are a family tradition. His grandfather, John Woodward, played football at Rice from 1964-67 and spent two seasons on the Owls baseball team. His mother, Ginny, played soccer at the University of Connecticut from 1993-96.
With one year of eligibility remaining, Ivy plans to continue competing for Rice during the 2026-27 season. He is preparing to apply to medical school this summer and hopes to begin his medical studies in the fall of 2027 after completing his collegiate athletic career.
