The men’s track and field team opened their indoor season with a bang, winning ten events at the Metro Holiday Meet on Friday in Staten Island. The women also impressed on Friday with six wins and six personal records.
Junior sprinter Carrington Akosa concisely summarized the team’s expectations heading into the season opener. “Collective team goals for the season are the same as any other season: to become Ivy League champions both in the indoor and outdoor season,” Akosa stated. “Also, we are expected to send more people to nationals this season.” The Tigers are indeed already on their way.
Akosa won both the 60 and the 200; he also took the 4x400 relay alongside sophomore mid-distance runner Cole Bransford, junior sprinter Josh Freeman, and freshman sprinter Connor Matthews.
Junior mid-distance runner Jared Lee finished first in the 1000 at 2:35.08, followed shortly by junior Eric Schulz in fifth.
Princeton also claimed first and second in the 3k. Senior distance runner William Paulson won at 8:22.60, and junior mid-distance runner Rob Stone finished in second place nineteen seconds later.
At 8.14, freshman hurdler and sprinter [which one?] tied Wagner’s Dylan Beard for first in the 60 hurdles.
Senior jumper Xavier Bledsoe reached 2.10 in the high jump, the longest in the tournament, to take first place.
Junior August Kiles took first in the pole vault, reaching 5.10.
The Tigers swept the shot put division, with senior Chris Cook finishing in first with a throw of 17.31, junior Mitchel Charles in second at 16.58, and senior Jared Bell in third at 15.87.
Princeton also dominated in the weight throw. Sophomore Adam Kelly reached 20.66 to earn first place, while senior Vic Youn took second 16.67.
The women also started the indoor season on a high note. Junior distance runner Melissa Reed described the mentality that her team adopted as the season opener was approaching. “We always want to win the Ivy League title,” Reed stated. “The whole team is going to be coming into the season in such good shape and ready to clinch the Ivy League title for indoor. I think one of the big things we’re really focusing on is making sure that we’re not only a team within our event group, but a holistic team. That’s the type of mentality and work ethic that we’ve demonstrated that will allow us to win the Ivy League title.”
They kicked off this quest for the Ivy League Championship with six event wins and six new personal records on Friday at the Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex.
Junior hurdler and combined runner Maia Craver won the 200 with a personal record of 24.83. Senior mid-distance runner Elisa Steele also set a personal record at 25.34, finishing in third in the same event.
Craver set another personal record in the prelims of the 60 hurdles at a time of 8.75. Sophomore Ellie Randolph, however, took her place in the finals and finished in first with her own personal record of 8.80.
Randolph also won the long jump after clearing 5.44 on her fourth attempt.
Sophomore Madison Offstein reached a personal record of 5:06.17 in the mile to finish in third.
The Tigers went 1-2 in the 4x400 relays. Junior Quinn Parker, freshmen Heide Baron and Ashley Willingham, and Steele ran 3:48.03 to take first place, while the team of Craver, sophomores Frances Lodge and Mikaela Sawyer, and freshman Hadley Wilhoite finished honorably in second at 3:56.20.
Junior Kennedy O’Dell threw a personal record in the shot put, placing second at 13.98.
O’Dell also placed second in the weight throw at 16.69. Senior Julia Ratcliffe took the win at 18.66.
Both the men and the women are scheduled to compete in the New Year Invitational at Jadwin Gymnasium next Sunday.
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