Men’s track and field divides across country to find success

Over fifty men on Princeton’s track and field team traveled across the nation this weekend. The competitions included the highly competitive Texas Relays, Florida Relays, Stanford Invitational and Muhlenberg Invitational. Out of these competitions, Princeton emerged with a new set of personal records and experiences for the Heptagonals.

Starting with the prestigious Texas Relays, the star was senior pole vaulter Adam Bragg, who broke Princeton’s outdoor pole vault record with a jump of 5.50 meters. Surrounded by the amazing Texas weather and some of the nation’s top pole vaulters, Bragg placed fourth representing the Orange and Black.

Looking back on the event, the southern California native explained that he had been anticipating the Texas Relays since the beginning of the season. After putting forth the preparation for the record, Bragg reflected, “I think it gave me more insight. I am very confident in my progression so far. I am very comfortable and positive. It reassured me that I am doing things right.”

Generalizing to the wider track and field population, Bragg explained that Princeton’s coaches strategized the busy weekend schedule to increase team experience. Bragg explained, “I think the coaching staff took this weekend to go and look for the best places to put up the best performances, to seek the areas where we’re going to have the highest levels of competition. Everybody performed as well as we could hope for.”

Turning to the more heavily Princeton-represented Florida Relays, the men’s team exceeded expectations. Junior Ray Mennin sits atop the headlines with his 400 m personal record of 47:03. The time earned Mennin a tenthplace finish in a highly competitive field. Menni then pivoted into the 4x400 m where he, along with senior Daniel McCord, junior Jabari Johnson and sophomore Joshua Freeman, helped Princeton claimed fifteenthoverall.

Junior Jared Bell also received attention at the Florida Relays for finishing second in the discus throw. Bell’s first-attempt of 52.26 m was behind only the top throw of 53.5 m.

Jumping back to the west coast, Princeton’s delegation at the Stanford Invitational earned success in the long distance events. On one hand, sophomore Noah Kauppila led the Tigers for the 5k with a time of14:07. Behind him were freshmen Jeremy Spiezio and Steven Sum. Turning to the 10k, senior Michael Sublette recorded a personal record of 29:37.

Perhaps the most dominant performance for the Tigers came in Pennsylvania at the Muhlenberg Invitational. In contrast to the weekend’s other competitions, Princeton was the team-to-beat at Muhlenberg. All in all, the Tigers won six of the competition’s events, including several 1-2 finishes.

To begin, freshman Cole Bransford continued the team’s success in the 400 m with a personal record of 49.42. Then junior Brent Alberton won the 100 m with yet another personal record of 10.85. Subsequently, sophomore Spencer Long and junior Greg Leeper came in first and second in the 400 m hurdles. The combination of junior Bryant Switzer, Albertson and sophomores Mike Seaton and Max Schwegman rounded out the track with a win in the 4x100 m.

Looking ahead, the Tigers will stay at home for three weekends before taking on the highly-anticipated Penn Relays and Ivy League Heptagonal Championships.