This past weekend, the Hopkins men’s track & field team competed at the prestigious Bucknell Classic. The Blue Jays faced off against some of the top Division III track teams in the region, along with several Division I schools.
Despite going head to head with schools such as Lehigh and Bucknell, Hopkins still enjoyed great success throughout the competition. With two new school records, as well as a qualifying time for the United States Junior Nationals, head coach Bobby Van Allen was certainly pleased with some of the team’s individual performances.
Freshman Schaffer Ochstein out of Dallas, Texas ran to a first place finish in the 5000m. The time of 14:56.70 made Ochstein the third runner in Hopkins history to break 15 minutes in the indoor event. The freshman record also allowed Ochstein to qualify for the United States Junior Nationals.
Ochstein’s impressive performance will allow him to compete against some of the nation’s other top runners this summer in Des Moines, Iowa. When asked about his personal achievements, Ochstein humbly referred to his team, parents and coaches for his success. “I am just so thankful to have such a good support system that has allowed me to have great success this year. Our coaching staff really pushes us to achieve at the next level, and my teammates have always been there with me throughout the training process.”
Not to be outdone was teammate Andrew Carey who put forth another notable performance on the track. The junior from Massachusetts had a strong showing in the 800 meter run, finishing with a season-best time of 1:55.87.
The third place showing was the top time in the Centennial Conference this year. Carey is now ranked 22nd among Division III athletes. Just behind Carey was teammate Trevor Holmgren. The freshman, a California native, finished in 1:57.77. Third place for the Blue Jays was brought home by junior Steve Hyland. The trio will continue to push one another as the Conference Championships approach in several weeks.
Sprinter Colin O’Connor put forth a fast time in the 400 meter dash. Despite being only a freshman, O’Connor already finds himself second in the Hopkins’ record books. With a top time of 52:03 the budding star stands less than a half second away from the top spot. O’Connor also posted a time of 23.52 in the 200 meter dash. Once again the fleet-footed freshman secured second place on the Hopkins record books. Continued efforts both on and off the track will surely help boost O’Connor to the top spots.
Leading the Blue Jays in the jumping events was Hopkins junior Alex Jebb. To start off the day Jebb built upon his recent success, securing a second place finish in the long jump. In the event he posted a season best of 22’3.75”. Jebb’s high flying continued onto the triple jump, where he leaped an impressive 45’1.75”. The effort earned Jebb a hard fought third place finish.
Leading the long distance runners was Julian Saliani. The junior glided to a personal best time of 4:21:27 in the mile run. The commendable performance places Saliani third on the Hopkins all-time performance list. Representing the Blue Jays in the 3,000 meter was senior James Frick. Frick cruised to a time of 8:45.51, a personal best for his career.
Next week Hopkins returns to action on Friday at the Keogh Invitational in Haverford, PA. The competition should begin to give Hopkins a good idea of where they stand against conference opponents. Apart from Haverford, teams such as Dickinson and Swarthmore will be competing. The meet will be the final tune-up before the Blue Jays compete in the Centennial Conference championships the following weekend.
