Four records fell for the Cardinal track teams at Wesleyan’s Elmer Swanson Invitational on Saturday, and the Red and Black walked away with several first place finishes.
For the men, Matt Moss ’05, Jeremy Solomon ’05, Wes Fuhrman ’05, and Owen Kiely ’06 joined forces to disembowel the team record in the 4×1500-meter relay, taking first place with a time of 16:43. The previous record of 18:11 somehow managed to stand for ten years before Saturday.
“I was glad we got the opportunity to take down the record,” said Solomon. “Who doesn’t want to be on a record board, right? Plus I get to put my name down next to three guys who will litter the individual slots on that record board, not to mention three of my best friends.”
The sprint medley relay squad, consisting of Dan McLaughlin ’08, Max Piana ’05, Taylor Bentley ’06, and Nik Gavelis ’08, also broke a team record, finishing second with a time of 3:37. Continuing Wesleyan’s success in the relay events, the 4x800m squad took first place (8:04), and the 4x400m and 4x100m squads each took second place (3:31).
Solomon and Fuhrman notched two more first place finishes for the Cardinal men, as Solomon ran 1500 meters in 4:02 and Fuhrman continued to gradually improve after returning from an injury, running 3,000 meters in 9:04.
“As for my individual victory, I couldn’t be more pleased,” Solomon said. “I’ve had some injury issues that have made this my first outdoor track season and though I won a race down in Florida during spring break, that was what I judge as my first collegiate victory, and the time was a personal best. As a runner it is hard to ask for more than that.”
Sam Grover ’08 provided the Cardinals with their fifth first place finish, triple jumping 45-2 1/2, just missing the team record. Grover also finished second in the long jump (19-9) and tied for second in the high jump (6-0). Joel Pratt ’07 also jumped 6-0 in the high jump and Piana was third in the long jump (40-8 1/4).
“This was our best team-performance we’ve had all year,” Fuhrman said. “Everybody looked sharp, even Alex Battaglino [’07]. VP Taylor Bentley turned in a beast of a day, as did Jeremy Solomon and Max Piana. It was just the kind of meet we needed to get us geared up for the championship season. We’re looking real dangerous.”
The women also broke the 4×1500-meter relay record, as seniors Megan Wise, Liz Colville, and Courtney Quirin teamed up with sophomore Ellen Davis to finish first with a time of 20:10. The previous mark, which had stood for eleven years, was twenty seconds slower. Quirin, along with wrestler Adam Jonas ’04, was recently presented with Wesleyan’s Roger Maynard Memorial Award, given annually to male and female outstanding scholar athletes.
The Distance Medley Relay squad of Wise, Colville, Davis, and Cara Chebuske ’06 also broke a longstanding Wesleyan record (12:50, 1987), winning the event in 12:47. The spirit medley relay squad notched a first place finish (4:34), and the 4x400m relay squad claimed second place (4:22).
The final first place finisher for the Cardinals was Erin Smith ’06, who ran 3,000 meters in 10:39. Chebuske finished second in the 800-meter event (2:23), and Tamier Holder ’08 placed second in the 100-meter dash (:13.63).
The next meet for the Cardinals is this Saturday’s Little Three Meet at Amherst College.
“This week was just a tune-up, a taste of what’s to come from our squad though,” Solomon said. “We had some big-time performances like Fuhrman doubling back to crush the 3k field despite recent injury. I think we’re ready to rock at Little Threes, NESCACs, and beyond, and as I like to say, ‘Let the bodies hit the floor.’”
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