Jumbos Drop Big League Times at Valentine

(2/16/2012 12:44 PM) Full Results

An elite squad of Jumbos headed across town this past weekend to compete at Boston University’s Valentine Invitational. The fast track and stellar competition promised an opportunity for great marks. Compiling a host of personal records, the Jumbo’s made the most of it.

The DMR crew kicked off the day, posting the seventh-fastest mark in the nation at 10:00. Senior Connor Rose notched one of the more impressive performances of the meet, leading off with a 3:00 1200m leg. Rose will capitalize on this speed next weekend when he goes toe-to-toe with some of the country’s best milers at the New England Championships. Sophomore Graham Beutler took the stick and blazed a 48.6, followed by junior Jeff Marvel's season-best 1:53. Classmate Sam Haney closed shop with a solid 1600m. He came back later that day with a gutsy 2:32 in the K, showcasing the determination that makes him a DMR stalwart.

Beutler doubled back in the 200m dash and blew the doors off his former PR by over a second. His 22.34 is now #3 All Time for Tufts. Not to be outdone, frosh sprinter Wylan Simpson put up his own PR of 23.30 to crack the Freshman Top Ten list. In the 400m, junior Vinnie Lee dipped under 50 to run 49.84. Rounding out a strong day in the sprints were PRs from senior Ben Crastnopol, junior Lawrence Xia, and sophomores Dan Lange-Vagle and Clint Porte.

In the afternoon, the distance squad mounted an all-out attack on the Mile. Sophomore Ben Wallis destroyed his former PR, crossing the line in 4:17.82. Classmate Bobby McShane also broke 4:20 -- the fifth of the year for TUTF. At the end of it all, the mile squad as a whole had an outstanding meet, accruing a total of nine PRs in total.

At the end of a long day, junior Matt Rand stepped on the track in the fastest section of the 5000m and ran to a new PR of 14:34. He currently sits at 10th on the national list. After battling a series of injuries Rand came out looking stronger than ever.

This Saturday, the Jumbos head to Springfield College for the Division 3 New England Championship. Here, the focus shifts from fast times to gritty racing as they go up against the best in the region. With 100% of last year’s point scorers returning, they look to better their 2011 performance.


Full Results