Trunk-full of competition as men's track triumphs

For the third time in four weeks, the men's track team raced to victory, triumphing over a strong field of 13 teams on Saturday at the Gantcher Center. Anchored by some of the season's most impressive performances, the Jumbos defeated Ithaca College by 36 points. Bates and Colby finished third and fourth, while rivals Keene State and St. Lawrence failed to show up.

"There were no slow races all day," coach Connie Putnam said. "Ithaca, Bates, Colby, and to a lesser degree Stonehill, gave us all that we needed in every race."

The day started on a bad note, when in the 4x200 senior tri-captain Greg Devine re-aggravated an injury sustained last week. However the Jumbos rebounded with dominance, including key efforts by several freshmen team members.

Freshman Shawn Hansberry (1:22.49) broke sophomore teammate Ray Carre's school record (1:23.03) in the 600 meter run, winning the event by nearly four seconds.

"I just went out and ran my race," Hansberry said. "There were a couple good guys in the heats, it was very competitive, and I was pretty surprised [by the result]. There were some good personal records today, and we're looking good going into the New Englands."

Fellow freshmen Seth LaPierre, Patrick Mahoney and Trevor Williams also excelled. LaPierre won the pole vault with a vault of 4.27 meters, comfortably beating Bates' Matthew Ondra (4.12). Junior Adrian Clarke (3.81) finished fifth, giving the Jumbos multiple scorers.

Mahoney (52.06 seconds) and Williams (PR 52.31) finished third and fifth respectively in the 400, followed by Carre (52.37) in sixth. The three combined for 13 points, a huge positive considering Devine's absence from an event he usually dominates.

"The freshmen are a huge part of the team," senior tri-captain Bryan Pitko said. "The way they've matured through the season is great, and they'll be a real asset when the championships come around."

Junior Ryan McPherson (13.00 meters) finished fourth in the shot put, while freshman Jason Galvin (12.31) scored his first shot put point of the season, finishing eighth. It marked the first time in three years that the Jumbos have had two point scorers in the event at one meet.

This has an important effect, according to Putnam, because it helps neutralize often dominating point hauls made by opponents in the event. Bates, boasting one of New England's better throwing teams, is one such opponent. Its throwers scored 32 points in the two throwing events, almost a third of Bates' total score of 102.

In the distance events, sophomore Aaron Kaye (PR 4:01.55) ran fourth in the 1500, a race Putnam described as 'sterling.' Sophomore Nate Brigham (PR 15:11.05) and junior Peter Bromka (15:25.85) came second and fourth in the 5000, while senior tri-captain Adam Sharp (1:57.23) set a career-best in the 800, placing fourth.

"It was a breakthrough race for me in terms of my time," Kaye said. "I felt like we've been working really hard in practice and it's been paying off. There were a lot of really great performances today."

In the 3000, sophomore Michael Don (8:48.77), junior Jon Rosen (8:54.87) and freshmen Kyle Doran (8:55.68) and Matt Lacey (8:56.03) finished third, fifth, sixth and seventh. It was the first time in several years that four Jumbos have finished under nine minutes, something Putnam said showed the team's progress and hard work.

The relay teams raced well, finishing second in both the 4x400 (3:27.21) and 4x800 (8:15.47). In the 4x200, despite aggravating his injury, Devine gritted out his leg of the race and the team still managed a third place finish (1:33.80).

"Greg was running comfortably, then went looking for an extra one percent," Putnam said. "He spasmed, and I don't want to risk an All-American in a silly last chance meet [next week]."

Devine was pulled from his remaining events, but his absence in the 55 hurdles was overcome by a one-two finish by Pitko (7.85) and sophomore Nate Thompson (7.97), a sign of the strength and depth displayed by the team. Thompson also finished second in the long jump (6.51 meters) and third in the triple jump (12.66).

"You never get to the game with the best lineup intact," Putnam said. "It's the mean of that group that leads you there."

All in all, it was a satisfying day for Coach Putnam, who can look forward to the team's next meet with great confidence.

"When guys put in like that, the coach goes home with nothing to complain about," Putnam said.