This weekend, Barton Hall held one surprise after another for the nine teams battling it out for the Heps Championship title. After a poor showing on Saturday, the Cornell women bounced back yesterday to win the meet. The men’s team experienced a less pleasant turn of events as it watched its first place standing slip away as the second day’s competition wore on.
“We were second going into the last event,” said men’s coach Nathan Taylor. “Fifth place was a little disappointing but we did have some terrific individual performances, particularly in the field events,” Taylor added.
Junior Brett Coffing took second in the weight throw, while sophomore Jason Hart managed a fourth place finish in the triple jump and took second in the long jump.
Cornell pole vaulters, sophomore Travis Offner and senior Scott Lundy, stole the top two spots in their event. Senior Max King and junior Don Dombroski also gave Cornell two top-five finishes in the 5000m.
The women, who enjoyed their first win at Heps since 1995, also had a number of outstanding performances.
“It was great that so many people contributed to the final score. Not only that, but we contributed in a lot of events,” said coach Lou Duesing.
Senior Lena Mathews started the Red runners off with a win in the mile early in Sunday’s competition. Sophomore Merili Mosley continued the winning streak with a record-setting time in the 60m hurdles.
Junior Katy Jay dominated the sprinting events with three first-place finishes and two school records. Jay and sophomore Hannah Garrity were an unstoppable force in the 60m, taking first and third, respectively. The duo went on to lead the 200m race as well, where Cornell captured four of the top six spots.
A two-woman effort also triumphed in the 400m, as freshman twins Jessica and Shonda Brown grabbed the third and fourth place spots. Teamwork paid off for Cornell again in the relay events, where the women took first in the 4x400m and second in the 4x800m.
The field events were marked by a consistent effort on the part of the Red jumpers and throwers. In the long jump, Jessica Brown and sophomore Lauren Kilduff placed fifth and sixth, respectively, and sophomore Ibralate Stanley-Ikhilioju took fifth in the triple jump.
A solid showing in the shot put rounded out the Red’s performances. Senior Emily Eigel captured second place while junior Sarah Herskee took fifth.
Archived article by Meredith Long