Men’s and women’s track traveled to Haverford this past weekend and managed to bring home some top placements. This invitational proved to be advantageous to Hopkins, as conferences will be taking place at Haverford in a few weeks. Running on the track this weekend will allow the team to be more familiar with the grounds during playoffs.
Several Jays grabbed first-place finishes in the event, as the men and women combined for seven golds altogether, and had nearly 30 placements in the top five as well.
For the men, senior Brahma Kumar nabbed first place in the 400-meter at 52.34 seconds. Senior Elliot Wehner and freshman Andrew Minicucci finished with times of 53.13 and 54.59, respectively, good for third and fifth place.
Freshman Alex Jebb took home first place in the 55-meter hurdles at 8.42 seconds followed in fourth place by fellow freshman Derek Hatfield at 8.89 seconds.
The shot put was another successful event for the Jays, with junior Luke Sand winning with a distance of 46 feet, 11.5 inches — a season best for him. Senior Ryan Lino moved into fourth place with a distance of 44 feet, 9 inches.
Freshman Brendan Evans won the triple jump, getting all the way out to 42 feet, 11.5 inches, while Alex Jebb finished out just behind Evans at 42 feet, 10.25 inches. Junior Harper Wilson got fourth place at 41 feet, 9.75 inches. Evans also placed fourth in the 55-meter dash at 6.80 seconds.
In the 4x200 meter relay, the team managed a time of 1:35.00, which gained a third place finish. In the 4x400, the team hit a season-best 3:29.35 for second place.
Senior Brandon Hahn spoke highly of the meet.
“Overall, I thought that this was a very good meet for our team. A lot of athletes had their best performances of the season, which is great with conferences coming up,” he said.
“We also have some big meets coming up in Boston and New York these next few weeks, not to mention that everyone seems to be peaking in their performances.”
For the women, senior Anita Mikkilineni placed second in the 55-meter hurdles with a phenomenal 8.78 second run. It is the second-best time for any Hopkins runner to date.
Despite her accomplishment, Mikkilineni was quick to talk about the team’s performance.
“The effort the girls have put in this season really came through last Saturday,” she said. “We are three weeks away from conferences and I would love to beat Haverford again. On paper we have all the talent to win the title but it will come down to doing all the little things and staying healthy.
Regardless, I am really proud of all the girls who stepped up on Saturday and I can't wait to see what we can do come conferences.”
Many other Hopkins runners performed well at Haverford. Senior Elizabeth Laseter finished second in the mile with a time of 5:16.39 and sophomore Annie Monagle placed fourth at 5:18.48. Junior distance runner Cecilia Furlong pulled off a fifth-place finish with a time of 2:23.00, beating out 44 other runners.
Alana Merkow placed first in shot put, reaching 38 feet, 11.75 inches, followed by freshman Emily Swenson who grabbed third place with a distance of 36 feet, 2.25 inches. Junior Stephanie Amalfe finished in fourth place, with a 32 foot, 11.75 inch toss.
The Lady Jays also placed highly in the pole vault, with sophomore Emily Kashka leading the way with a first place height of 9 feet, 10 inches. She was joined in the top five by senior Logan Ashcraft and sophomore Tracey Vill.
Maggie Shelton, Sam Stuek, Annie Monagle and Anita Mikkilineni ran the 4x400 and placed first with a time of 4:16.34.
Junior Alison Smith placed second in the 55-meter dash, with a 7.54 second run.
Sophomore Amelia Vallenilla also grabbed second place in the 200-meter dash, running a 26.94.
Things are looking good for the indoor track season as the men and women get closer to the conference championship. Expect to see some fantastic numbers from them as they gear up to take control of the Centennial Conference this spring.
