HAVERFORD, Pa. - In the first of two consecutive home meets in the lead up to the Centennial Conference Championships, the Haverford College men's track & field team contested the McElligott Invitational on Saturday inside the Alumni Field House, posting seven top five finishes on the afternoon. Reigning Centennial Conference Track Athlete of the Week Jamie Moreland also competed at the David Hemery Valentine Invitational in Boston, clocking a time of 1:55.45 in the 800 meters on the fast track in the Allston neighborhood. The time is almost three seconds faster than the time that Moreland set at the NYC Division III Invitational two weeks ago, and currently ranks second in the Centennial Conference with results from meets across the region still trickling in.
Back at home, the 800-meter contingent was paced by Nico Tripeny, as the sophomore registered a fifth-place showing in a career-best 2:00.27. Charlie Ferguson finished sixth, also nearly going under two minutes as he finished in 2:00.44. Two-time CC Indoor Track Athlete of the Week Matt Katz was a top 10 finisher in the distance, taking ninth in 2:01.33, missing his career best by just three-hundredths of a second. Simon Perales finished 11th (2:02.55), while Nathan Leighninger was 16th (2:05.50). Nick Scardigno (2:05.52) and Gene Perry (2:07.37) were both slotted within the top 20 while Scott Kaiser rounded out the Haverford contingent in 22nd (2:09.25).
A big grouping in the mile was led by senior Sam Ditkovsky, who grabbed his PR in 4:29.79 for a fourth place finish. Jeffrey Allen was seventh in 4:31.97, also a career-best mark for the sophomore. Co-captain Hiro Kawakatsu finished 10th in 4:32.67. Amos Karlsen (4:46.58), Ryan Quenemoen (4:49.54), Nathan Akerhielm (4:51.12) and William Hillegas (4:53.27) also contested the mile for the Fords. Max Brelig paced a field of five Haverford runners in the 5,000 meters, crossing in fifth overall (15:57.63). Ryan O'Donnell was the ninth place finisher in 16:24.96, while Jacob Gaba crossed in 14th overall (16:35.27). Steve Gan was 18th in 16:52, while Jack Fanikos crossed in 20th (17:06.07).
Dylan Kupetsky contested the sprints for Haverford, crossing in 27.93 in the 200 meters and 1:02.70 in the 400 meters. The 200 meter time was a new career-best mark for the first year. Haverford's 4x200 meter relay squad of Ethan Gadra, Alex Reichard, Ashton Smith, and Perry posted a second-place finish in 1:39.88, while the 4x400 meter squad featuring Kawakatsu, Allen, Ferguson, and Katz took a fifth place finish in 3:43.53.
In field events, Gadra finished second in the pole vault, clearing a height of 3.95 meters (12'-11.5") while Andrew Lummus was the third place finisher in the triple jump, clearing 12.11 meters (39'-8.75"), a new career best. Rasaaq Shittu contested the weight throw, notching a mark of 7.94 meters (26'-0.75"), while Cameron Albrecht finished 13th in the shot put, clearing 8.2 meters (26'-11"), a new personal best for the co-captain.
Haverford has another weekend of home action on the horizon, as the regular season wraps up with the Keogh Invitational on Saturday, February 22. Events are slated to begin at 10 a.m. as the home meet represents the final competition before the Centennial Conference Championships open on February 29.