Crimson Makes Gains in League Tourney

In a deeply talented Heptagonals field, host Harvard made a long-term statement.

With both men’s and women’s track and field showing marked improvement in head coach Jason Saretsky’s tenure, this weekend’s Ivy League Championships at Gordon Track allowed the squad to show its progress. The women jumped to third place, building on last year’s fourth-place effort, as the men also gained one position, claiming seventh.

While these improvements may appear modest, sophomore distance runner Dan Chenoweth showed optimism for the results.



“[This weekend] was a really good step for both the men’s and women’s teams,” he said. “I think we are a lot further than we were last year. [The men] outscored last year on the first day [of this year’s competition] and it shows we’re moving in the right direction as a program.”

With sizeable representation for each squad, the crowd buzzed with excitement through each nail-biting finish. Over 30 events crowned an Ivy champion, and Cornell and Princeton emerged as the frontrunners, claiming first and second for men and women. But, on the women’s side the Crimson showed that it is ready to contend with the best, pushing Brown out of the top three.

Harvard’s women amassed 79.5 points over the two-day competition, through stellar individual efforts and strong relay performances.

Senior Shannon Flahive set the tone on day one with a championship in the pentathalon. Flahive’s 3,650 points marked both a personal best and a qualifying bid for ECACs.

Classmates Becky Christensen and Dara Wilson also highlighted the women’s side, taking home first place in the high jump and 60-meter hurdles, respectively, while Aishlinn O’Callaghan claimed third in the 800-meter. Senior Brittan Smith rounded out a stellar group effort, taking second in the long jump.

Christensen continued her sheer dominance of Ivy League competition, returning from a fourth-place finish at the USA indoor championships on Saturday to trounce her Heps opponents with a jump of 1.81 meters yesterday.

Wilson’s win was less of a foregone conclusion, but the senior edged out Penn’s Hannah Cope with a time of 8.76, eliciting roars of approval from teammates and fans.

With 44 points from the five upperclassmen, Saretsky acknowledged the importance of this core of seniors.

“The performance of our senior class on the women’s side was fantastic,” he said. “It’s a real testament to how committed they are to the program and how much they’ve bought into the new coaches and what we’re preaching. They should feel really proud with where we’re at.”

In addition to the impact of these fourth-year athletes, Harvard benefited from strong, young distance running.

Sophomore Claire Richardson took first in the 3000-meter event, while fellow second-year Jamie Olson and rookie Nicole Cochran earned third and fourth in the mile.

The women also took third in both relays, rounding out the scoring for the Crimson. Sophomore Hilary May rebounded from a disappointing individual 800 performance with a blistering leg in the two-mile team effort, combining with Olson, sophomore Thea Lee, and freshman Meghan Looney to post a strong time of 9:00.49.

Chenoweth paced the men’s side with stellar distance races of his own, matching Richardson with a 3000-meter championship and anchoring a third-place distance-medley team.

“I am a lot happier than last year,” Chenoweth said. “I wanted to do well and it was just a great meet overall.”

The men did not post an impressive team score, notching 41 points against the Big Red’s dominant 176.5. Princeton notched 121.5, followed by Columbia with 82, Yale with 55, and Brown with 52. Dartmouth trailed with 18 points.

Despite suffering against talented competition, Harvard’s enthusiasm stemmed from individual success in various events.

Co-captain Derek Jones posted another strong time in the 400, earning third in 48.87. The senior also led a charge for fourth in the mile relay, earning four more points for the Crimson at 3:18.63.

Freshman Nico Weiler continued to assert his place among the league’s top pole-vaulters, taking second with a jump of 5.10 meters.

With improvements for the entire track and field program, excitement continues to build for the Crimson. The team will compete at ECACs and IC4As next weekend in an effort to send select athletes to indoor nationals. As Harvard gears up for the outdoor team season, though, it will continue to look to its strong seniors and rapidly developing youth for a balanced and successful formula.

—Staff writer Max N. Brondfield can be reached at mbrondf@fas.harvard.edu.