Head Coach Sherman Hart said he believes DeCarteret will break the school record at some point.

“It’s just a matter of time,” he said. “We need to put her in more warm weather meets and let her perform. I think she’s going to get it.”

Classmate Julia Westover qualified with her second-place finish in the hammer throw with a toss of 168 feet, 2 inches, while junior Saleena Abdur-Rashed qualified in the 100-meter hurdles with a 14.03. This time was good enough for a fourth place performance in the women’s event.

Freshman Max Milder also finished the hammer throw in second place (165 feet, 7 inches) for the men’s team while teammate senior Alex Iannetta came in behind him with a third place finish of 165 feet, 3 inches.

“[The meet] was a stepping stone to doing better in the future against even bigger competition,” Milder said, who competed in his first large-scale collegiate meet this past weekend. “In high school, I had a good feeling that I would win, but now as a freshman I’m at the lower level and have to fight for my spot in every meet. It is very motivating.”

In addition to Milder’s success, senior Patrick Jablonski got the highest mark for NU for the season in both the discus and shot put.

He threw the discus 51 feet, 1.5 inches for a third place finish and the discus 159 feet, 11 inches for fourth. Freshman Kevin Rosenberg also competed in the shot put and came in fourth place with a distance of 48 feet, 8.25 inches.

Freshman Kaylin Miranda and senior Andrew Staples both qualified for the Intercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes of America (IC4A) meet with their performances in the men’s long jump. Miranda jumped 23 feet, 10 inches for second place and Staples jumped 23 feet, 8 inches for third.

Junior Brian Racca jumped 46 feet, 1.25 inches for a fourth place finish in the men’s triple jump.

Juniors Evan Whetsell and Nick Ryan both had top finishes in their running events for the men’s team. Ryan ran the 5,000-meter run in 14:58.81 for second place and Whetsell ran the 800-meter run in 1:52.50 for fourth.

Both Hart and Westover mentioned the warmer weather and higher level of competition as contributing factors to the team’s success.

“It was nice to see everyone be able to compete and not be freezing to death,” Hart said. “The team really responded well to the weather and the competition.”

Milder attributed part of the teams’ success to the leadership of Hart and his assistants.

“The coaching staff was helpful in making sure that we had the best chance to do well,” he said. “With the coaches and the team we have, I am positive that we will go far this year.”

Four distance runners were missing from this Florida meet because they traveled to Northern California for the Stanford Invitational.

“This meet is considered one the best distance invitationals in the country,” Hart said. “Only the best of the best compete. The mere fact that you get in means that you are a good runner.”

Senior Jessica Barton broke the school record in the 5,000-meter run by almost nine seconds with a NCAA championship qualifying time of 16:35.85. Senior Seri Gordon also competed in this meet in the 800-meter run. She finished in her best time for the season of 2:14.40.

Freshmen Eric Jenkins and Brian Doyle both competed in the 5,000 meter run at this meet. Jenkins finished in 14:09.07 winning his section. He got the third best time in school history and the best ever for a freshman. Doyle finished the event in 14:53.41.

Both teams are traveling to Mahwah, New Jersey next weekend for the Ramapo Invitational.

The women’s 4 x 400 meter relay team also finished fourth with a time of 3:55.31, composed of Abdur-Rashed, freshmen Camille Henry and Chelsea Hudson and junior Nikki Cunha.