This past weekend, the Hopkins men’s track team divided and conquered across three separate invitationals in the midst of their indoor season. A contingent of the team went north to State College, Pa. for the Penn State Invitational, while another group continued on an hour further north to participate in the 17th Annual Bison Open. Finally, a third group of athletes headed south to Fairfax, Va. to participate in the Patriot Games at George Mason.
Though initially, it may seem odd that a team divide itself into three to participate in competitions, Coach Bobby Van Allen had some method to his madness. In general, Van Allen brought each individual runner or field athlete up against the best possible competition to be had in order to achieve the best times, throws or jumps. All athletes involved put forth solid performances, with several standouts in particular.
Over the two-day competition at Penn State, a host of middle- to long-distance runners had very strong showings against top Division I competition. The Jays placed three runners in the top 10 in the 5000-meter run on Saturday with senior Austin Stecklair leading the way with a fourth-place finish and personal record of 14:58.33. Senior Andrew Ceruzzi and freshman Tyler Wolfe rounded out the 5k field, placing ninth- and 10th-place, respectively.
On Sunday of the event, junior Trevor Holmgren and All-American senior Andrew Carey ran solid times in their separate heats. Holmgren posted a 1:54.3, which earned him fourth place. Carey ran a 1:53.71 against mostly D1 competition.
The Bison Open at Bucknell witnessed two Blue Jay athletes pull off an impressive feat: competing for consecutive days in two completely different meets. After sophomores Tom Pavarini and Jesse Poore ran legs in the Hopkins distance medley relay on Saturday at Penn State the two competed in the open 800-meter run and men’s long jump, respectively. Pavarini came in second in the race with a 1:59.21 while Poore came in third in the long jump with a season best of 6.49m.
Like Penn State, Bucknell proved to be a success for the Hopkins long-distance squad. Sophomore Stefan Arnold ran a personal best on the season with an 8:46.77 in the 3000-meter run, good enough for sixth place. Fellow sophomore Akshay Alaghatta came in eight seconds and three spots behind him. Sophomore Arvind Arikatla had a personal record of 2:38.37 and became another Jay to place in the top 10 that day, this time in the 1000 meter run. Finally, junior Ryan Schwartz and freshman John McMullin saw great improvements in their mile times with 4:28.88 and 4:27.01 finishes, respectively.
“Things went well across the board at Bucknell as the team is really getting into mid-season form,” Arnold said. “I’m thankful the guys, myself included, are heading in an upward trajectory for the toughest part of our schedule.”
Finally, fantastic multi and field event finishes helped cap off the weekend with a statement performance at George Mason. In the Patriot Games, sophomore Andrew Barnett continued his high flying ways, setting a new Hopkins indoor record on the pole vault while topping his own indoor personal best with a 16-04.75 (5.00m) vault.
Newcomer phenom Matt Fischetti set a freshman school record with 4,187 points in his first collegiate heptathlon, cruising to a second-place finish. He particularly succeeded in the 1000-meter run and shot put sections of the competition, coming in first and second, respectively. Junior Blue Jay heptathlete Devin Conley finished right behind Fischetti with a 4095 point total. Senior Ryan Walsh had a solid showing on the high jump as well, with a 6-06.25 top jump that earned him third place.
The next competition for the men’s team will be this coming weekend at the McElligot Invitational in Haverford, Pa.
