PRs Continue To Fall At NESCAC Championships, Tufts 3rd Overall

(4/25/2009) See more Photos     Full Results

As the morning sun shone down on the Connecticut College track and field complex this past Saturday, it was obvious to all that most current season bests would be a thing of the past in just a few short hours. With increased competition, intensity, and weather, all factors were in alignment for a great meet. And those Jumbos suited up for the 2009 NESCAC Championships did not disappoint.

The meet began with the 10,000m as sophomore Jerzy Eisenberg-Guyot hooked onto the lead pack and refused to let go for the entire 6.2 mile race. He would kick home for a finishing time of 32:49.91, more than 70 seconds off his season best. Classmate Chris Brunnquell added his own season best performance with his 33:51.11 as both qualified for the New England Championships.

From there, the team had a few highs and lows in the early going. Young throwers Alex Gresham ’12 and Matt Williams ’13 each heaved personal bests in the hammer throw finishing 2nd and 5th, respectively. However, at the same time across the track, the high jumpers fought to regroup after the loss of senior captain James Bradley. Bradley, the two-time defending NESCAC Champion, was a tough loss for the Jumbos, but junior Isaiah Paramore battled for a 6th place tie in the event.

In the other vertical jump, a trio of Jumbos vaulted to great performances this weekend. Decathletes Jared Engelking and Skip Pagel both PRd in the event clearing 13-9 for the first time. Sam Read added his own clearance of 14-3 which was good enough for a 3rd, 4th, and 6th place for the Jumbos.

Simultaneously, the trials of the men’s 100m and 110H were occurring. Three Jumbos, Philip Rotella, Andrew Longley, and James Wheeler, battled with a talented 100m field to qualify for the finals. In the finals, Tufts would move on to claim 2nd, 4th, and 8th overall. In addition, both Engelking and Pagel qualified for the finals of the 110H. Engelking would keep the 110H title in Tufts hands for the 3rd consecutive year with Pagel adding a 7th place finish of his own. Rounding out the morning session was the men's steeplechase where junior captain Nick Welch cruised home for a 3rd place finish in 9:40.51.

One of the most exciting and competitive events of the day would have to have been the men's long jump. This heated battle was one of the best NESCAC long jump competitions in recent memory. Pagel's PR of 21-11.5 (6.69m) was good enough to earn him the #5 spot on both the Tufts All Time Top 10 list as well as 5th place in the meet. Pagel now sits on 7 separate Top 10 lists for the Jumbos. Following on Pagel’s heels Isaiah Paramore (21-4), James Wheeler (21-0), and Jonathan Pak (20-8) each added their own PRs.

Sadly, this great high of the long jump PRs coincided with one of the lower moments of the day for the Jumbos. An injury to the leadoff leg of the 4x100 relay left them unable to finish. With three Jumbos in the finals of the 100m dash, this was an event that the Jumbos looked to fair quite well in.

However, in great Tufts fashion, the next athlete to step on the track did a miraculous job jump-starting the team's overall momentum. Junior Matt Tirrell continued his stellar outdoor season dropping another 5 seconds of his 1500m PR to finish in 4:04.20. Teammates Jeff Ragazzini and Jesse Faller followed up with their own PRs in the seeded section finishing in 4:01.10 (8th), and 3:56.74 (3rd). In the race, Ragazzini earned the #9 spot on the Tufts All Time Top 10 list tying All American Nate Brigham. At the same time Faller moved up to the #2 overall spot. Faller and Welch would come back towards the end of the meet in the 5k, gritting out hard-fought points in 8th and 6th place, respectively.

From here, the rest of the day added it's own onslaught of season bests and PRs. Freshmen Ben Crastnopol and Gabe Bourgeois both dropped full seconds off their 400m PRs to finish in 50.09 and 51.49 respectively. Not only did Crastnopol qualify for the ECAC Championships and finish 5th overall from the 2nd section, but he also earned the #10 spot on the Tufts All Time list.

Adding 10 barriers to the 400m still couldn’t slow down the Jumbos. Pagel (performing a lifetime or season best in every event this weekend) and junior Trevor Donadt each added season bests in the 400IH finishing just outside of scoring in 9th and 10th.

Finishing off the day, the pair of rookie throwers, Luke Lamothe and Spencer Ross, continued to improve adding their own personal bests in the discus competition. Both Lamothe and Engelking also scored in the javelin finishing 7th and 2nd overall. Engelking had a incredibly impressive day scoring 22.5 points for the Jumbos in three separate disciplines (1 run, 1 jump, 1 throw). At the same time, Rotella added his own exclamation points to the day. Moving up from 4th to 1st in the final 15m of the 200m dash, Rotella began to show his true strength. Rotella would come back to anchor the men’s 4x400 in a respectable 48.6 leg.

When everything shook out in the end, the Jumbos came away with a very well earned 3rd place finish, just 0.5 points behind 2nd place Bates College. The Jumbos knew that they were entering this meet with a big uphill battle ahead of them. With the absence of national qualifier Ikenna Acholonu and All Americans Scott Brinkman and James Bradley, everyone knew they needed to step up. And step up they did.

Sometimes it is difficult to swallow a 0.5 loss regardless of what place it is for. However, every Jumbo, past and present, should be proud of each performance this weekend. As a program, almost the men of TUTF did everything to step up and fill the holes left by some dominant athletes. With the return of some great performers next year and an exciting incoming freshmen class, the Jumbos already have an optimistic outlook for next years NESCAC Championships. Oh, did I fail to mention that they’ll be contended at Tufts next spring…


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