Weekend Meets Bring Strong Individual Outings

Harvard Track and Field competed hard and yielded some great results in the IC4A and ECAC Championships this past Saturday and Sunday.

Of the men, who competed in the 20-event IC4A Championships at Boston University’s track, standouts included sprinter John Dingus and pole vaulter Nico Weiler, both freshmen.

Dingus qualified for the finals of the 400-meter dash, finishing ninth overall at 48:19 and breaking his own school record. He finished eighth in the finals at 49:43.

Weiler finished his event impressively at first overall, vaulting 5.00 meters. The rookie was pleased with his performance, but felt that he could have done better.

“I did alright,” Weiler said. “It was a pretty even competition. I’m not too happy that I didn’t make the qualifying for nationals, but I was glad that I won.”

Weiler won the competition, narrowly edging Connecticut College’s Kyle Duggan.

“We were both really tired, so I guess that’s just how it played out,” Weiler said.

Not qualifying was a disappointment to someone who has enjoyed so much success in such a short time. In 2006, Weiler was the Under-18 world champion in pole vaulting.

In 2008, Weiler was the EA Sports Scholar-Athlete of the Year and was named to the All-USA team by USA Today.

Harvard sophomore Sean Gil finished eighth, matching his personal best by clearing 4.80 meters.

Distance-running sophomore Dan Chenoweth followed his Heptagonals title in the 3000-meter by finishing second overall on Saturday with a time of 8:06.64, just two seconds shy of his personal best.

The weight-throw event proved to be very productive for Harvard competitors. Though there were no overall winners from the Crimson, many athletes achieved their best college results. Senior thrower Neville Irani achieved a personal best in the weight throw, finishing 11th with 17.65 meters.

Sophomore thrower Ablorde Ashigbi topped his previous personal best by over two meters, throwing 16.62 meters. Junior Jack Brady also showed improvement, throwing a career-high 16.48 meters.

“Overall, I was really pleased with the way that the team competed,” Harvard coach Jason Saretsky said.

The women’s ECAC Championships, which is a meet mainly for individual rather than team competition, also took place this past Saturday and Sunday, at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Complex in Boston.

“It’s been a very long indoor season,” said hurdler Dara Wilson, who lead the Ivies last week in the 60-meter hurdles with an 8.76-second finish. “I think, given all of those things, [Saturday] was a pretty strong day for us.”

Harvard senior hurdlers Shannon Flahive and Dara Wilson both finished the 60-meter hurdles at 8.84 seconds in the opening day of competition.

Sophomore distance runner Jamie Olson finished sixth place in the one mile run at 4:55.88, which qualified her for Sunday’s final. She improved by shaving critical seconds off of her previous time, finishing sixth on Sunday at 4:52.59.

Sophomore runner Hilary May finished second in the 1000-meter run, at 2:50.46.

Crimson runners ended with positive results across many events, coming in third in the distance medley and sixth in the 4x400-meter relay.

Senior high jumper Becky Christensen, among the best in the nation at her event, won the high jump event by clearing 1.85 meters. Senior high jumper Dina Emde finished seventh, clearing 1.65 meters.

Overall, Harvard finished seventh in the team rankings on Sunday. Though some veterans shined individually, the women are also looking to the future excitedly.

The track and field team has many talented freshmen and sophomores on both the men’s and women’s sides, so the graduating seniors will leave a legacy to be continued.

“We have a lot of young freshman who are really great,” Wilson said. “The quality of the team is improving exponentially.”