Patch Lawrenceville, NJ --
The Rider University men’s and women’s track and field teams both won the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) outdoor track and field championships on Sunday.
It’s the first time in school history that both the men’s and women’s teams won the conference championship in the same season.
“My goal when I took over the program five years ago was to win both titles in the same season. To have everybody happy is a great thing. It’s always a little rough when you win on one side and have half a team happy. On the men’s side we were on point in every event, which was fantastic. The women were in a battle with Saint Peter’s. We were in a battle with them in every event,” said head coach Bob Hamer, who was voted both men’s and women’s MAAC Coach of the Year.
“The reality of the situation is that the team wouldn’t be as successful as it is without my staff and all the work they put in, and great coaches are made by great athletes and we have a great group that makes us look great,” Hamer said
The Rider men finished with 242 points, knocking off defending champs Manhattan (185 points) by 57 points and the women recorded 252.5 points topping Saint Peter’s (226.50) by 26 points.
For the Rider men, junior Wilvenson Baptiste (Irvington) was named Most Outstanding Track Performer. Baptiste won MAAC gold in both the 100-meter dash (10.98) and the 200-meter dash (21.66) and helped lead the 4x100-meter relay team to a first place finish and the 4x400-meter relay to MAAC silver.
“It was a good meet from start to finish. I think everybody on the team gave a solid effort. It was good to see a win on both sides. I try to lead by example by doing the right things at practice,” Baptiste said.
The men’s 4x100-meter relay team of senior James Burroughs (West Orange), sophomore Anthony DeFranco (Berkeley Heights/Governor Livingston), Baptiste and senior David Hightower (Easton, Pa./Easton) won in 42.08 and the 4x400-meter relay team of Baptiste, senior Greg Wesh (Hatboro, Pa./Hatboro-Horsham), Burroughs and junior Joseph Carlin (Staten Island, N.Y./Staten Island Tech.) finished second with a time of 3:17.40.
Hightower won MAAC gold in the 110-meter hurdles (14.24) in IC4A qualifying time, setting a new meet record. Hightower also finished fourth in the 200-meter dash (22.48). Burroughs won the 400-meter hurdles (53.78) and finished second in the 110-meter hurdles (14.24) in IC4A qualifying time.
For the Rider women, freshman La'tazah Coleman (Middletown, Del/Appoquinimink) won the 100-meter dash (12.12) and the 200-meter dash (24.74), finished second in the high jump and was seventh in the 100-meter hurdles (14.77). Freshman Dashana Ransome(Irvington) won the 100-meter hurdles (14.09) in meet record, Rider record and ECAC qualifying time, junior Lauryn Strebeck won the triple jump (11.58m) and sophomore Taylor Harmon (Robbinsville) won the high jump (1.61m),
Also for the Bronc men, Wesh was second in the 800-meter run (1:51.49), junior Steven Brown (Penns Grove) was second in the triple jump (14.54), junior Matthew Millemann was second in the 400-meter hurdles (54.14) and third in the 110-meter hurdles (15.13), seniorDave Brown (Ewing) was third in both the 400-meter dash (49.51) and 400-meter hurdles (54.85), senior Perry Asare (Lindenwold) was third in the triple jump (14.39), freshman Darnell Charles (Mays Landing/Oakacrest) was third in the 200-meter dash (22.28), tied for third in the 100-meter dash (11.20) and fourth in the triple jump (14.36), freshman Charles Wilks (Secane, Pa./Cardinal O’Hara) was third in the discus throw (47.11m) and sixth in the shot put (13.70m) and DeFranco was third in the pole vault (4.50m) and fifth in the 100-meter dash (11.32).
Sophomore George Solujich (East Windsor/Notre Dame) was third in the shot put (15.45m) and fifth in the discus throw (45.59m), freshman Darien Edwards was fourth in both the 400-meter dash (49.81) and 400-meter hurdles (55.37), sophomore Nasser Zayer(Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter’s) was fourth in the 1500-meter run and Carlin was fourth in the 800-meter run (1:53.87).
Also for the Bronc women, senior Erin McMullin (Philadelphia, Pa/Nazareth Academy) was second in the 400-meter dash (57.53) and sixth in the 200-meter dash (25.70), sophomore Sydney Grimes (West Orange) was second in the shot put (12.43m) and sixth in the discus throw (34.87m), freshman Madeline Hummel (Marlton/Holy Cross) was second in the 400-meter hurdles (1:02.24) and fifth in the 400-meter dash (58.18), freshman Alicia Carthan (Bordentown) was second in the discus throw (36.91m) and fifth in the shot put (11.81m), freshman Nicole Georgia (Lincoln Park/Boonton) was third in the 400-meter hurdles (1:02.84) and eighth in the 100-meter hurdles (14.88), sophomore Emily Ritter (Millsboro, Del./Sussex Tech) was third in the 1500-meter run (4:33.78) and seventh in the 800-meter run (2:17.83) and freshman Miranda Roberts (Sewell/Washington Twp) was third in the pole vault (3.12m) and seventh in the 100-meter dash (12.61).
Sophomore Ashley Edwards (Westfield) was fourth in the 400-meter dash (57.99), junior Rhea Phipps (Basking Ridge/Ridge) was fourth in the discus throw (35.23m), senior Megan Elgin (Doylestown, Pa/Central Bucks East) was fourth in the 5000-meter run (17:49.49), senior Mia Riley (West Caldwell/James Caldwell) was fourth in the 100-meter dash (12.40), fourth in the shot put (11.90m) and fifth in the 200-meter dash (25.51) and freshman Daria Chadwick (Summit) was fourth in the high jump (1.61m), fifth in the 100-meter hurdles (14.60) and sixth in the 400-meter hurdles (1:04.96).
“I think it was a very collaborative effort. Everyone worked hard and we did what we needed to do,” Riley said, “It means the world to us to win this. We’ve trained so hard, and we had a lot of young people step up and give a great effort.”
Other men’s results include: freshman Sam Knipper (Randolph) was fifth in the 1500-meter run (4:00.16), junior Quintin Robin(Jamison, Pa/Central Bucks East) was sixth in the high jump (1.84m), and junior George Osti (Union) was sixth in the discus throw (42.75).
Other women’s results include: freshman Olivia Rosenberger (North Wales, Pa/Gwynedd Mercy Academy) was seventh in the triple jump (11.12m), freshman AndreaMcKenna (Parlin/St. John Vianney) was seventh in the shot put (11.38m), senior Krista Musinski(West Pittston, Pa/Wyoming Area Secondary) was eighth in the triple jump (10.61)
“We have a nice group of seniors that brought the team together and talk with the freshmen about the learning experience. I believe you have to learn to win, and they showed me they’ve learned. The 4x100 set the tone, they went out and won on both sides and we just went out from there. That’s how you win championships; you have to roll with the punches of the meet. We pride ourselves on being a complete team. We were there in every event,” Hamer said.
The women’s 4x100-meter relay team of Ransome, Riley, Roberts and Coleman won in 47.76 and the 4x400-meter relay team of Hummel, Coleman, McMullin and Georgia finished second (3:51.04).
This is the men’s second MAAC Championship in three years and eighth conference title overall. The Bronc men won its last MAAC team title in 2011, are four time East Coast Conference (ECC) champs (1986,1989, 1992, 1992) and two time Northeast Conference (NEC) champs (1994, 1995).
This is the third overall MAAC championship for the Rider women, which won outdoor team titles in 2004 and 2007.
Qualifiers from the Bronc men and women will travel up the road to Princeton University to compete at the 137th IC4A/30th ECAC Championships May 10-12.
Women’s Final Team Standings: 1. Rider 252.5; 2. Saint Peter’s 226.50; 3. Manhattan 117; 4. Iona 104; 5. Loyola (Md) 74; 6. Marist 33
Men’s Final Team Standings: 1. Rider 242; 2. Manhattan 185; 3. Saint Peter’s; 4. Iona 81; 5. Marist 39.5.
*—Rier University*
Reported by Patch 5 hours ago.
The Rider University men’s and women’s track and field teams both won the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) outdoor track and field championships on Sunday.
It’s the first time in school history that both the men’s and women’s teams won the conference championship in the same season.
“My goal when I took over the program five years ago was to win both titles in the same season. To have everybody happy is a great thing. It’s always a little rough when you win on one side and have half a team happy. On the men’s side we were on point in every event, which was fantastic. The women were in a battle with Saint Peter’s. We were in a battle with them in every event,” said head coach Bob Hamer, who was voted both men’s and women’s MAAC Coach of the Year.
“The reality of the situation is that the team wouldn’t be as successful as it is without my staff and all the work they put in, and great coaches are made by great athletes and we have a great group that makes us look great,” Hamer said
The Rider men finished with 242 points, knocking off defending champs Manhattan (185 points) by 57 points and the women recorded 252.5 points topping Saint Peter’s (226.50) by 26 points.
For the Rider men, junior Wilvenson Baptiste (Irvington) was named Most Outstanding Track Performer. Baptiste won MAAC gold in both the 100-meter dash (10.98) and the 200-meter dash (21.66) and helped lead the 4x100-meter relay team to a first place finish and the 4x400-meter relay to MAAC silver.
“It was a good meet from start to finish. I think everybody on the team gave a solid effort. It was good to see a win on both sides. I try to lead by example by doing the right things at practice,” Baptiste said.
The men’s 4x100-meter relay team of senior James Burroughs (West Orange), sophomore Anthony DeFranco (Berkeley Heights/Governor Livingston), Baptiste and senior David Hightower (Easton, Pa./Easton) won in 42.08 and the 4x400-meter relay team of Baptiste, senior Greg Wesh (Hatboro, Pa./Hatboro-Horsham), Burroughs and junior Joseph Carlin (Staten Island, N.Y./Staten Island Tech.) finished second with a time of 3:17.40.
Hightower won MAAC gold in the 110-meter hurdles (14.24) in IC4A qualifying time, setting a new meet record. Hightower also finished fourth in the 200-meter dash (22.48). Burroughs won the 400-meter hurdles (53.78) and finished second in the 110-meter hurdles (14.24) in IC4A qualifying time.
For the Rider women, freshman La'tazah Coleman (Middletown, Del/Appoquinimink) won the 100-meter dash (12.12) and the 200-meter dash (24.74), finished second in the high jump and was seventh in the 100-meter hurdles (14.77). Freshman Dashana Ransome(Irvington) won the 100-meter hurdles (14.09) in meet record, Rider record and ECAC qualifying time, junior Lauryn Strebeck won the triple jump (11.58m) and sophomore Taylor Harmon (Robbinsville) won the high jump (1.61m),
Also for the Bronc men, Wesh was second in the 800-meter run (1:51.49), junior Steven Brown (Penns Grove) was second in the triple jump (14.54), junior Matthew Millemann was second in the 400-meter hurdles (54.14) and third in the 110-meter hurdles (15.13), seniorDave Brown (Ewing) was third in both the 400-meter dash (49.51) and 400-meter hurdles (54.85), senior Perry Asare (Lindenwold) was third in the triple jump (14.39), freshman Darnell Charles (Mays Landing/Oakacrest) was third in the 200-meter dash (22.28), tied for third in the 100-meter dash (11.20) and fourth in the triple jump (14.36), freshman Charles Wilks (Secane, Pa./Cardinal O’Hara) was third in the discus throw (47.11m) and sixth in the shot put (13.70m) and DeFranco was third in the pole vault (4.50m) and fifth in the 100-meter dash (11.32).
Sophomore George Solujich (East Windsor/Notre Dame) was third in the shot put (15.45m) and fifth in the discus throw (45.59m), freshman Darien Edwards was fourth in both the 400-meter dash (49.81) and 400-meter hurdles (55.37), sophomore Nasser Zayer(Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter’s) was fourth in the 1500-meter run and Carlin was fourth in the 800-meter run (1:53.87).
Also for the Bronc women, senior Erin McMullin (Philadelphia, Pa/Nazareth Academy) was second in the 400-meter dash (57.53) and sixth in the 200-meter dash (25.70), sophomore Sydney Grimes (West Orange) was second in the shot put (12.43m) and sixth in the discus throw (34.87m), freshman Madeline Hummel (Marlton/Holy Cross) was second in the 400-meter hurdles (1:02.24) and fifth in the 400-meter dash (58.18), freshman Alicia Carthan (Bordentown) was second in the discus throw (36.91m) and fifth in the shot put (11.81m), freshman Nicole Georgia (Lincoln Park/Boonton) was third in the 400-meter hurdles (1:02.84) and eighth in the 100-meter hurdles (14.88), sophomore Emily Ritter (Millsboro, Del./Sussex Tech) was third in the 1500-meter run (4:33.78) and seventh in the 800-meter run (2:17.83) and freshman Miranda Roberts (Sewell/Washington Twp) was third in the pole vault (3.12m) and seventh in the 100-meter dash (12.61).
Sophomore Ashley Edwards (Westfield) was fourth in the 400-meter dash (57.99), junior Rhea Phipps (Basking Ridge/Ridge) was fourth in the discus throw (35.23m), senior Megan Elgin (Doylestown, Pa/Central Bucks East) was fourth in the 5000-meter run (17:49.49), senior Mia Riley (West Caldwell/James Caldwell) was fourth in the 100-meter dash (12.40), fourth in the shot put (11.90m) and fifth in the 200-meter dash (25.51) and freshman Daria Chadwick (Summit) was fourth in the high jump (1.61m), fifth in the 100-meter hurdles (14.60) and sixth in the 400-meter hurdles (1:04.96).
“I think it was a very collaborative effort. Everyone worked hard and we did what we needed to do,” Riley said, “It means the world to us to win this. We’ve trained so hard, and we had a lot of young people step up and give a great effort.”
Other men’s results include: freshman Sam Knipper (Randolph) was fifth in the 1500-meter run (4:00.16), junior Quintin Robin(Jamison, Pa/Central Bucks East) was sixth in the high jump (1.84m), and junior George Osti (Union) was sixth in the discus throw (42.75).
Other women’s results include: freshman Olivia Rosenberger (North Wales, Pa/Gwynedd Mercy Academy) was seventh in the triple jump (11.12m), freshman AndreaMcKenna (Parlin/St. John Vianney) was seventh in the shot put (11.38m), senior Krista Musinski(West Pittston, Pa/Wyoming Area Secondary) was eighth in the triple jump (10.61)
“We have a nice group of seniors that brought the team together and talk with the freshmen about the learning experience. I believe you have to learn to win, and they showed me they’ve learned. The 4x100 set the tone, they went out and won on both sides and we just went out from there. That’s how you win championships; you have to roll with the punches of the meet. We pride ourselves on being a complete team. We were there in every event,” Hamer said.
The women’s 4x100-meter relay team of Ransome, Riley, Roberts and Coleman won in 47.76 and the 4x400-meter relay team of Hummel, Coleman, McMullin and Georgia finished second (3:51.04).
This is the men’s second MAAC Championship in three years and eighth conference title overall. The Bronc men won its last MAAC team title in 2011, are four time East Coast Conference (ECC) champs (1986,1989, 1992, 1992) and two time Northeast Conference (NEC) champs (1994, 1995).
This is the third overall MAAC championship for the Rider women, which won outdoor team titles in 2004 and 2007.
Qualifiers from the Bronc men and women will travel up the road to Princeton University to compete at the 137th IC4A/30th ECAC Championships May 10-12.
Women’s Final Team Standings: 1. Rider 252.5; 2. Saint Peter’s 226.50; 3. Manhattan 117; 4. Iona 104; 5. Loyola (Md) 74; 6. Marist 33
Men’s Final Team Standings: 1. Rider 242; 2. Manhattan 185; 3. Saint Peter’s; 4. Iona 81; 5. Marist 39.5.
*—Rier University*
Reported by Patch 5 hours ago.