Men’s track team splits up, sets multiple PRs

The men’s track team split up once again this weekend as it took on competition in both Haverford, Pa. and New York City. The day was full of personal bests for the Blue Jays.

In Haverford, Hopkins participated in the McElligott Invitational where the team was led by sophomore Jesse Poore. Poore earned a first place finish in the long jump event with a jump of 6.39m (20-11.75).

Freshman Harpreet Gill took home second place in the triple jump with a personal-best 12.57m (41-3). Gill’s personal record bested his previous height of 12.26m, which he set last weekend at the Patriot Games.

Fellow freshman Geoffrey Kazlow also set a personal-best in the 5000-meter run, crossing the finish line with a time of 15:53.22. The finish was fast enough for fifth place, also a personal-best.

Junior Doran Walsten ran in the 5000-meter run as well, where he took off more than 21 seconds from his earlier personal best. Walsten finished with a time of 16:09.53.

Classmate Corbyn Yhap joined in on the besting of previous personal records when he took off 0.20 seconds in the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.42. Yhap also placed ninth in the 200-meter dash (24.45).

In New York City, the Jays competed in the Ramapo College Select Meet where they placed fifth.

Hopkins was led by star sophomore pole vaulter Andrew Bartnett, who was able to overcome the obstacles of jumping during indoor season as he cleared 4.90m (16-00.74) and placed second in the event.

“Vault practice during indoor can be difficult, so with each meet I am working on figuring out little technical things that will make everything click and allow me to jump high,” Bartnett said.

Sophomore Akshay Alaghatta also had a second-place finish when he set his own personal indoor record with a time of 15:37.63, taking off more than two seconds from his previous best time. Alaghatta finished just ahead of teammate Louis Levine, who finished third with a personal-best 15:39.47.

The Jays were able to also pick up points in the high jump, as senior Ryan Walsh took fifth place with a final jump height of 1.98m (6-6).

Sophomore Stefan Arnold and freshman Brandon Fielder ran nearly step-for-step in the One Mile Run, finishing sixth and seventh, respectively. Arnold, running in the event for the first time in his career, finished in just 4:26.71. Fielder joined many of his teammates in running a personal best with a time of 4:28.94.

Arnold, much like the other athletes, is focused on preparing for the last leg of the season.

“The gun went off and I focused on running a tactical race, getting used to the quicker leg speed that will be required during the 3K I’ll be racing in Boston this Valentine’s Day,” he said. “I’d like to do whatever I can to help my team win another conference championship and represent Johns Hopkins University in a positive manner.”

Hopkins will continue its season in the Boston University Valentine Invitational Feb. 13 and 14 as its final meet before the Centennial Conference Championships in Boston Feb. 28 thru March 1.