HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Haverford College men's outdoor track and field team made a big jump in the latest US Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches' Association's computer rankings. The Fords jumped from No. 18 last week to No. 8 this week.
It's the highest ranking for Haverford since placing sixth in the final weekly rankings last season. The Fords began the 2015 season at No. 24 and went to No. 18 in week two before their most recent improvement.
Last week, head coach Tom Donnelly's squad participated in two events, the Larry Ellis Invitational at Princeton and Widener Invitational.
Widener Invitational
During the 5,000m race, the Fords had five runners place among the top 12 finishers, led by junior Nick Gandolfo-Lucia's winning time (15:26.39). Sophomores Evan Hamilton (15:32.16), Charlie Hale (15:35.35), junior Dylan Verner-Crist (15:36.14) and senior David Marsico (15:36.44) all broke personal records and finished in the top 12. Senior Zachary Gabor also broke his career best time by over a minute with a 17:33.55.
Senior Gibby Graves was named the Centennial Conference Field Athlete of the Week after winning the high jump event (2.02m). The senior's jump just missed his personal record by one-tenth of a meter, but is the best in the Centennial Conference this season. The senior also placed second in the triple jump (13.76m) and nabbed a third top five finish of the weekend after placing fourth (6.58m) in the long jump.
Larry Ellis Invitational
In the 1,500m event, junior Charlie Marquardt broke his personal record with a 3:45.71 which was good for 16th place among the 86 runners in the field. His time is the fastest in Division III by two-tenths of a second. The junior also has the second quickest time in Division III for the 5,000m (14:21.63) which he ran at the Sam Howell Invitational (Apr. 3). With that, Marquardt was named Centennial Conference Track Athlete of the Week for the second time in the outdoor season.
Senior David Roza placed in the eighth position during the steeplechase. His 9:05.90 time, while just missing his personal best, is the second quickest in Division III. Senior Joel Christian nabbed a top ten finish, placing seventh in the 10,000m event with a personal best time of 30:33.30. That mark is the sixth quickest time among Division III runners in the event this season.
The Fords will host a dual meet on Tuesday before traveling to the West Chester Open on Friday. The Centennial Conference Championships will be May 1-3 at Muhlenberg College.