Track Shows Promise in Last Tune-Up Meet

Last Saturday, the Harvard track and field team traveled to compete in the Brown Invitational, a six-team meet against Brown, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Providence, South Connecticut State, and Bryant. Both the men’s and women’s squad garnered a third-place finish with scores of 122 and 97, respectively.

The Crimson battled not only the five other teams in the meet but also less than ideal weather conditions. Despite the extra opponent, the team was still able to perform and place well, although top finishes were not Harvard’s first priority during the weekend competition.

“I was very pleased with how the meet went,” Harvard coach Jason Saretsky said. “The competition was a lot more about focusing on individual aspects and technique rather than marks.”

The Crimson finished behind a dominant Brown, which swept competition in both men’s and women’s play, and Rhode Island, which placed second on both sides. Harvard was able to stay ahead of the remaining teams, which traded places between the men’s and women’s sides.

After spending the last few weekends traveling to Florida, California, and Texas for meets, the closeness of Rhode Island was a relief for the team.

“It was nice to be so close,” co-captain Jack Brady said. “After traveling so much recently, it was a good break to be able to get back to campus and get some rest.”

Brady, who competed in three events on the weekend, helped propel the men’s team to their third-place finish. The senior took fourth place in the shot put with a distance of 15.28 meters—just behind freshman teammate Edward Brucker—took second in the discus throw with a distance of 46.92m, and captured first in the hammer throw with a distance of 56.82m.

For Brady, the weekend provided the opportunity to improve as a team and to prepare for the main part of the season.

“This weekend was a stepping stone,” Brady said. “There’s a lot more to accomplish, but this was just one more step in the process of a good season.”

Also contributing for the men’s side were sophomores John Dingus and Darcy Wilson, who crossed the line first in the 400m and 800m events, respectively. Dingus notched a time of 48.23 in his event, while Wilson finished in 1:53.41—both efforts that separated the winners from their closest competition by more than a second. Other first-place finishers for the Crimson were co-captain Justin Grinstead, and freshmen Fedor Garin and Kenneth Wang Kan who competed in the 400m hurtles, pole vault, and long jump, respectively.

The women’s team was similarly successful, recording three first-place finishes from freshmen Jasmine Cho and Sydnie Leroy, and junior Hilary May in the 400m dash, 800m run, and pole vault, respectively. Cho also crossed the line fourth in the 200m dash, following closely behind junior teammate Katrina Drayton, who posted a third-place finish with a time of 25.57. Another set of contributors for Harvard were sophomores Nicole Cochran and Kirsten Jorgensen, who each placed third in the 1,500 and 3,000m run with times of 4:33.64 and 10:34.86. Finally, freshman Shannon Watt competed in the shot put and discus, throwing distances of 13.91m and 41.70m—good enough for a third- and fourth-place finish in her respective events.

For a weekend that was focused more on technique than places, the Crimson still claimed a number of top finishes in all events.

“The weekend finish set us up well for the rest of the season,” Saretsky said. “It was a good last chance for fine tuning before the heart of competition.”

With a meet against Yale looming next weekend, Harvard can use this last chance to gain momentum against its rivals.

“We did good work this weekend,” Brady said. “Now we’re ready to put together a better performance to beat up on the bulldogs.”

—Staff writer B. Marjorie Gullick can be reached at gullick@college.harvard.edu.