On Saturday, No. 25 Tufts men’s track and field traveled to Bowdoin to compete in the Bowdoin Indoor Invitational. The Jumbos took third place in the competition and scored a total of 120 points, losing to MIT with 181 points and Bowdoin with 135 points. On Jan. 14, track and field hosted the Tufts Invitational, but no rankings were recorded. The main highlight of both competitions, however, were sophomore mid-distance runner Hiroto Watanabe’s nation-topping times in the 800-meter race.
At Bowdoin, Tufts won three of the events; the men’s 600-meter, 800-meter and the shot put. At the event, the Jumbos put up a large number of nationally-ranked times. Junior Andrew DiMaiti secured first place in the 600-meter with a time of 1:22.14. The entire 600-meter event was dominated by Jumbos, with senior tri-captain sprinter Nick Usoff placing third with a time of 1:23.78 and freshman mid-distance runner Roman Lovell taking fourth with a time of 1:25.52. Watanabe ran a 1:54.41 in the 800 meter, winning him the race and earning him the highest 800-meter time in Div. III.
Usoff said that Watanabe’s best-in-the-nation time will set the tone for the rest of the season.
“It's always a big motivator having someone run fast early in the year,” Usoff said. “It just kind of gets everyone fired up and gets everyone to try and replicate that. I think that it's been a long time coming because I see Hiroto working so hard every week and seeing it finally pay off is just a good message to everyone.”
First-year thrower Kevin Quisumbing also took first place at the Bowdoin Invitational, throwing a 15.43 meter heave in the shot put, which made him the 22nd-ranked thrower in the nation.The 4x400 relay team consisting of DiMiati, first-year Jordan Abate, sophomore Nico Agosti and senior Blake Coolidge posted a 3:27.50 time, ranking them 22nd in the country for the event.
Although no overall results were determined at the Tufts Invitational, the Jumbos still put on a number of strong performances at the meet. Coolidge ran a 7.04 in the 60-meter, tying the record for the fastest time for the event in Tufts’ history.Coolidge then went on to run a 22.42 time in the 200-meter, placing first in the race. Sophomore hurdler Henry Hintermeister came first in the 60-meter hurdle,with a time of 9.29. DiMiati also put in a strong performance and came first in the 400-meter, running a 50.41 time.
After a strong couple of showings, the Jumbos are looking forward to a successful season.
“I think the team is looking really strong,” senior tri-captain Tom Wang said. “We have obviously some guys that are doing incredibly well, even better than we thought this early. We still have some work to do in some other events, but I think that will come with time and more meets. But I think we're looking really deep and good in things we haven't before, which is exciting.”
Wang also said the team has higher goals and expectations for the season.
“For the indoor season, I think we have more guys that have more national [times] than we have in the past,” Wang said. “A lot of the top-end guys are looking to compete at the national level. I think we're going to fill up Div. III New Englands a lot more than last year too. I think, individually, the guys have their sights towards outdoor NESCACs and are looking really long-term.”
The Jumbos are now preparing to host the Tufts Stampede Invitational on Jan. 27-28 in Gantcher Center.
Men's track and field starts season strong with nation-topping performances
