When the fastest men in New England all gather in one place, something is bound to happen.
The Tufts men's track and field team will vie for conference dominance in the New England Div. III Championships at MIT this weekend. The Jumbos face off against a field of more than 15 teams, including both NESCAC and other Div. III schools.
Tufts has been preparing all season to avenge a crushing second-place 123-108.5 finish to rival Williams in last year's New England Div. III Championships. Williams has traditionally dominated New Englands, a pattern the Jumbos will try to reverse. Unprecedented Tufts strength in early events may send the team into Saturday in competitive position.
"I think it will be a close meet," senior tri-captain Trevor Williams said. "It will probably come down to the relays at the end. That can be a bit deceptive, though, because the meet starts tomorrow with the pentathlon. In the past, we've been weak in that event and behind going into Saturday, but this year there are good competitors in the event that should put us in a strong position."
The Jumbos have qualified athletes in every event. An athlete qualifies by reaching a certain mark and is then put on a provisional qualification list. The number of spots in the championship varies by event, and the athletes whose marks remain on the list prior to the competition are given bids.
Tufts has strong middle distance representation, particularly in the 600 meters, in which four athletes are participating. Williams, sophomore Nathan Scott, junior Nathan Cleveland and freshman Marcelo Norsworthy will represent Tufts in the event.
Standout senior Matt Fortin is key in the Tufts charge this weekend. Fortin holds the season's conference-best mile time, and is coming off a National provisional qualification and a new personal best by almost five seconds at last weekend's St. Valentine's Invitational. He is also qualified in second place for the 1000 meters and faces a rematch of the tight 1000 race against Rhode Island College senior and first-place qualifier Manny Karngar that occurred during the Tufts Invitational III.
Long distance has also remained consistently strong throughout the season, led by national championship provisional qualifiers senior tri-captain Matt Lacey, junior Josh Kennedy, and sophomore Chris Kantos.
The success of the middle and long distance runners has translated to success in the relays. Tufts has qualified teams in the top three spots for the 4x400, 4x800, and the Distance Medley Relay (DMR) and anticipates strong relay performances. This will provide a big boost in scoring, as relays are worth more points than individual events.
"The distance squad always has a strong showing in the 3k race and 5k," Williams said. "And this year that strength has transferred into the middle distance events. Ultimately the sprints, the pentathlon, and the depth of the distance program will tip the balance this weekend."
With junior Fred Jones' undefeated record against other Div. III athletes in both the long and triple jumps, Tufts looks secure in the horizontal jumps.
"Fred Jones is a perennial competitor in the jumps," Williams said. "Look for a really good performance from him this weekend."
Joining Jones is sophomore Jeremy Arak, a National
provisional qualifier and the first-place high jump qualifier for New Englands. His closest competition comes from junior Zach Geyer of Coast Guard, who hit a jump of 2.01 m last weekend at Bowdoin.
The true underdog of the day is the Tufts pole vault team. After losing experienced upperclassmen pole vaulters at the end of the last season, the event was a glaring weak spot in the team's jumping arsenal.
However, seniors Rob Lorie and Tim Bassell stepped up at last weekend's MIT Invitational, qualifying for the New England championships and shattering personal records.
