The men’s track and field team picked up a first-place overall finish and four individual victories in its first 2010 meet, the Saturday Night at the Armory event in New York.
The men’s and women’s track teams showed why expectations during the Atlantic Ten Conference portion of the schedule are high for this spring during their first meet in 2010, Saturday Night at the Armory in New York.
A preseason A-10 coaches’ poll selected the men to finish in third place and the women to finish fourth.
At the Armory, the men picked up four individual victories and a first-place overall finish at the event.
“I was very proud of our men’s squad today,” coach Eric Mobley said. “They went out there and competed really hard, and the results showed that.
“[The preseason poll] shows that the coaches of our conference are noticing the improvement of our squads,” Mobley added. “We expect great things out of ourselves too.”
Junior sprinter Emmanual Freeland, senior hurdler/jumper Josue Louis, senior sprinter/jumper Tim Boeni and senior thrower Bryce Buffaloe claimed the individual titles in the 60-meter dash, high jump, long jump and weight throw.
The men’s four individual wins led the event. Army, Fordham and Villanova finished in a three-way tie for second place with three individual victories apiece.
“I was very happy to have four individual victories,” Mobley said. “I was proud of the team as a whole. Even in the events we didn’t win, we competed hard and gave great effort.”
The men also finished in first place overall with a total score of 131. Army and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County came in second and third place, respectively. On a brighter note, the men’s team finished way ahead of city rival Villanova, which finished fourth with 86 points. The Wildcats had set the bar at the Jack Pyrah Invitational back in December.
The women’s team had its share of individual victories but failed to take home the team title like the men.
Freshman sprinter Victoria Gocht won the 800-meter, and the foursome of freshman sprinters Tessa West, Sheina Roberts and Tonney Smith and junior sprinter Paris Williams won the 4×400-meter relay.
“The women’s team didn’t have as much luck as the men, but they still put together a solid team performance,” Mobley said.
The women finished in third place overall in the 10-team women’s field with a total of 85.5 points. Connecticut and Villanova finished ahead of them. The Huskies and the Wildcats also dominated the individual victories with six winners each.
After garnering high expectations, Mobley said the first meet post-winter break was certainly a success for his squad. The Owls are hoping to carry this momentum with them into the A-10 Championships Feb. 19 and 20 at Rhode Island.
“Everything that we are practicing for is to prepare to be the best that we can for the conference championships,” Mobley said. “We look forward to seeing how much we really have improved.”
The team returns to action this weekend with two meets Saturday, the first against the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., and the other at the Princeton Relays in Princeton, N.J.
Ryan Rosengrant can be reached at ryan.rosengrant@temple.edu.
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