By Madeline Sattler, News Correspondent
The Northeastern track and field team welcomed 16 schools for a home competition on Saturday, and finished the day with 28 top three finishes combined.
“Overall we did really well performance-wise given the weather,” head coach Sherman Hart said.
The men dominated in the field, winning six of eight events. Senior jumper Andrew Staples won the high jump clearing 1.98 meters. Sophomore jumper Jackson MacDonald took the long jump title in a field of 17 athletes with a 6.68 meter leap.
The Huskies won one medal in the triple jump and one in the pole vault events. Sophomore Dylan Lucas soared over 4.27 meters to win gold in the pole vault while teammate senior Pablo Rodriguez finished third in the event. Husky jumpers junior Tejorn Davis and freshman Jasper McCoy finished first and third respectfully in the triple jump. Davis combined for a 14.06 meter leap to top the competition.
“I really wasn’t surprised by the performances at all,” Hart said. “I thought we were ready for the meet.”
Senior thrower Patrick Jablonski won his second discus title this season with a 51.83 meter toss. The senior was also victorious last weekend in South Carolina where he bested 61 other throwers.
“We didn’t change our game plan at all this week,” junior thrower Mark Mastone said. “The throwers have done well today and all season.”
Jablonski and Mastone took silver and bronze respectively in the shot put. Jablonski threw 15.95 meters while Mastone launched the shot 15.04 meters. Sophomore thrower Max Milder won the hammer throw clearing 56.27 meters.
“We’re looking for some more top performances down the way,” Mastone said. “The number one goal right now is the CAA [Colonial Athletic Association] championships.”
On the track, senior sprinter Darius Velez was the only male runner to win gold. The Massachusetts native ran the 100-meter dash in a quick 11.05 seconds to take the title in a field of 45 other runners. Fellow sprinter, sophomore Alex Shapiro posted two runner-up performances on the day. In the 200-meter dash, Shapiro ran a speedy 22.70 seconds and finished just two-tenths of a second behind the first-place finisher. The sophomore completed his 400-meter dash in 49.54 seconds.
“It felt really nice to get some outdoor races that meant something,” Shapiro said.
Freshman hurdler Jared Lane raced the 400-meter hurdles for the first time in his Northeastern career. The New Jersey native finished third in the event with a time of 55.76 seconds.
“I was really scared,” Lane said. “I just wanted to come out today and finish.”
Senior distance runner Sebastian Putzeys clinched second place in the 1500-meter run posting a time of 4:03.65. Fellow distance runner, senior Teddy Vrountas finished third in the 5000-meter run in 15:16.64.
“I’m proud of all the guys,” Lane said. “We came out and did well today.”
On the women’s side, the Huskies won gold in four different events. Senior sprinter Saleena Abdur-Rashed won the 100-meter dash over 44 other athletes in a speedy 12.50 seconds. The Huskies’ 4 by 100-meter ‘C’ relay finished first with a time of 48.12 seconds.
“Overall it went smoothly and we competed really well as a team,” said freshman sprinter Monet Braithwaite, who was a part of the relay.
Other first-place finishes include junior vaulter Jillena Decarteret in the pole vault who soared over 3.51 meters. Teammates and fellow vaulters, sophomore Kelly Benfey, senior Lauren Bennett and junior Ashley Furlong tied for third in the pole vault event clearing 3.13 meters.
Sophomore jumpers Georgia Pingue and Olivia Stevens finished first and second in the triple jump with leaps of 11.64 and 11.23 meters respectively.
“They did really well with it being so cold,” Hart said.
Junior throwers Rachel Taback and Julia Westover also placed in their respective events. Taback finished second in the discus with a 42.53 meter toss. Westover launched the hammer 52.07 meters to earn the bronze in a field of 29 competitors.
Senior sprinter Christina Gallagher and senior middle-distance runner Courtney Mortimer both earned bronze on their home track. Gallagher crossed the finish line in the 400-meter dash in 59.92 seconds. Mortimer completed the 800-meter run in 2:20.35, just three seconds behind the first-place finisher.
In the distance department, sophomore Danielle Klein had a solid showing in the 5000-meter run. Klein finished in 18:31.08 which put her second out of 14 runners, behind Rhode Island’s Cassandra Olson.
“Everyone did what they were supposed to be doing at this meet,” Hart said. “We performed really well.”
The Huskies’ season continues this Friday and Saturday with the Best Western Invitational in Jacksonville, Fla.
“We’ve been prepping all year for this outdoor season,” Hart said. “As I have said before, ‘play time is over.’”
