Fresh off a third-place finish at the 2025 Ivy League Indoor Heptagonal Championships, the Cornell men’s track and field team opened its outdoor season with strong performances across the East Coast. The Red scored 82 points at Indoor HEPS, highlighted by senior distance runner Damian Hackett’s record-breaking win in the mile with a time of 3:57.74, setting both the meet and Barton Hall facility records.
Building on that momentum, Cornell split squads this past weekend at the University of South Florida Alumni Invitational in Tampa, Florida, the 49er Classic in Charlotte, North Carolina and the Penn Challenge in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania — collecting individual wins, top finishes and promising early-season results.
At the USF Alumni Invitational, sophomore distance runner Tyler Tisinger made the most of his first travel meet for Cornell, clocking 1:52.21 in the 800m to finish tenth overall. For Tisinger, the tactical race provided a chance to trust his fitness and make a move when it mattered.
“With 300 meters to go, I was feeling really good and threw in a surge to take the lead,” Tisinger said. “I was able to hold off most of the field and took second in my heat, which is a great result for me since, on paper, I had the slowest seed time going in.”
Tisinger reflected on the experience of competing in Tampa as part of Cornell’s split-squad approach. “It feels good to be respected and trusted enough by the coaches to be on a travel squad,” he said. “It was an amazing experience to be part of a Division I program that sends athletes to races with great weather and competition.”
In the field events, sophomore multi-specialist Ryan Brynjolfson cleared 2.00m in the high jump for fifth place, while sophomore jumper and sprinter Desmond Whitley landed seventh in the triple jump with a 14.63 meter jump. Junior sprinter Ryder King impressed in the 400m hurdles, finishing ninth with 51.99 seconds.
At the 49er Classic, freshman Peter Northrup stole the show, winning the shot put with a 17.36m throw — good for eighth all-time in Cornell’s outdoor record books. Northrup also placed fourth in the hammer throw (52.15m) in his first time competing in the event Freshman thrower Joseph Rachiele took fifth in the javelin (52.20m), and junior thrower Noah Harman added a sixth-place finish in the shot put (16.26m).
Meanwhile, senior distance runner Tyler Patterson returned to competition for the first time in months at the Penn Challenge, grateful to be back on the line.
“I’ve dealt with some injuries the past few years and haven’t had many opportunities to race, so this one was special,” Patterson said.
Patterson ran alongside a group of freshmen making their outdoor debuts and came away encouraged by their grit. “The transition to college racing is pretty difficult and I thought Peyton [Shute], Colin [Martens], and Asher [Patel] all ran really well,” he said.
Freshman Peyton Shute delivered standout results, setting personal bests in the 1500m (3:52.90, sixth) and 800m (1:55.19, seventh). Patterson emphasized that these early meets are all about building toward May’s Ivy League HEPS.
“The goal for the team is always to be running our best in May,” Patterson said. “These early-season races are all about getting racing experience and building fitness.”
Also in Philadelphia, sophomore jumper Ryan Antwi leapt 14.25m to win the triple jump, while freshman Jason Meza took first in the 400m hurdles with a time of 52.66 seconds.
In the field, sophomore thrower Nicholas Frattina threw 15.34m for third in the shot put. Sophomore jumper and sprinter Kameron Coleman claimed second in the long jump with a career-best 6.62m and junior jumper Abraham Ailemen placed third with 6.43m.
Looking ahead, the Red will reunite for the Raleigh Relays hosted by North Carolina State on March 27-29 — an opportunity Tisinger says the team is eager for, along with the historic Penn Relays.
“This year is exciting because I believe our team is strong enough to compete for a championship relay win, which would be our first Penn Relays title since the ’50s,” Tisinger said.
With depth showing across sprints, hurdles, distance and field events, the Red is off to a promising start this outdoor season.
Cornell heads to Raleigh, North Carolina, for the Raleigh Relays March 27-29 with coverage of the event available on ESPN+.
