Orangewomen Fourth, Orangemen 10th At BIG EAST Outdoor Track & Field Championships
5/2/2003 1:39:34 AM | Cross Country, Track and Field
STORRS, Conn. - The Syracuse University track & field teams took home two individual titles, posted nine All-BIG EAST performances and set four school records at the 2003 BIG EAST Outdoor Track & Field Championship at the University of Connecticut’s George J. Sherman Family-Sports Complex on Sunday, May 4. The Orangewomen finished fourth with 70 points, while the Orangemen were 10th with 34 points.
It was the best finish for a Syracuse women's team at the conference championship since a fourth-place finish in 1992.
Freshman Kristen Michalski won the only individual women's title for SU at the meet, throwing the hammer 190-1. Her mark was less than a foot farther than her nearest competitor, sophomore teammate Johvonne Hernandez, who threw 189-2. Michalski's effort surpassed the previous school record of 189-7, set by Nicole Jackson in 1996.
A slew of All-BIG EAST performances by the Orangewomen surrounded Michalski's win on Sunday. Graduate student Alison Culley sped to a second-place finish in the 100-meter dash in 11.88 and finished fourth in the 200-meter dash in 23.38. Fellow graduate student Opal Jones ran a career-best 13.61 for second place in the 100-meter hurdles. The 400-meter relay team of Culley, Jones, junior LaNae Walker and sophomore Valerie Boling took the runner-up position in 45.67 and broke their own school record of 45.90 set earlier this year. Sophomore Jenna Grimaldi cleared 5-8.75 in the high jump for second place.
On Saturday, Hernandez earned All-BIG EAST honors with a thrid-place finish in the women's discus (160-4) and also took seventh in the shot put (45-1). Senior Zelma Jackson shattered her own school record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase for fourth place. Jackson's time of 10:44.15 was more than five seconds ahead of her previous school mark set at the Duke Invitational, April 4. Sophomore Tatiana Warren was seventh in the women's triple jump with a mark of 39-10.75.
The Orangemen were led by senior Tim Adrian, who successfully defended his 2002 shot put crown. Adrian captured his second consecutive BIG EAST shot put title with a throw of 58-10, besting his nearest competitor by three feet. It was his third BIG EAST outdoor title, following his win in the shot put last year and discus crown in 2001. He also took home All-BIG EAST honors with a runner-up finish in the discus with a throw of 172-4. Classmate Tim Biever was eighth in the discus with a throw of 147-6.
Junior Joshua Johnson grabbed fourth place in the triple jump with a mark of 49-7.25. Freshman Adam Bingaman tied for fifth in the pole vault with a height of 15-3. Senior Matt Troha# closed out his BIG EAST career with a seventh-place finish in the high jump, clearing 6-5. Freshman Santos Rodriguez also finished seventh in the hammer throw with a career-best mark of 167-8.
Freshman Valrij Petrulevich led the way on the track for the Orangemen and set a school record in the 800-meter run. His time of 1:50.15 was good enough for sixth place and bested the previous school record of 1:50.43, set by Aaron Brinsko in 1997.
SU will compete at the ECAC and IC4A Championships, held at Princeton University, May 16-18.
Women's Team Scores
1. Miami, 166; 2. Notre Dame, 126; 3. Pittsburgh, 94; 4. Syracuse, 70; 5. Villanova, 62; 5. Georgetown, 62; 7. West Virginia, 45; 8. Rutgers, 42; 9. Boston College, 38; 10. Virginia Tech, 36; 11. Connecticut, 35; 12. Providence, 34; 13. Seton Hall, 29; 14. St. John's, 17.
Men's Team Scores
1. Notre Dame, 139; 2. Connecticut, 136.50; 3. Virginia Tech, 75; 4. Rutgers, 73.50; 5. Georgetown, 73; 6. West Virginia, 70; 7. Villanova, 64; 8. Pittsburgh, 44.50; 9. Miami, 43.50; 10. Syracuse, 34; 11. Seton Hall, 33; 12. Providence, 31; 13. St. John's, 29; 14. Boston College, 7. Saturday's Agate
Women 100m: 2. Alison Culley, 11.58q; 13. Valerie Boling, 12.16; 17. Christen Tucker, 12.34. 200m: 2. Alison Culley, 23.43q; 17. Valerie Boling, 24.84. 100m Hurdles: 3. Opal Jones, 13.77q. 400m Hurdles: 9. LaNae Walker, 1:01.68. 3,000m Steeplechase: 4. Zelma Jackson, 10:44.15; 15. Erica Johnston, 11:52.28. Pole Vault: 16. Sarah Bentley, 10-6; 18. Jessyca Jackson, 10-6. Long Jump: 10. Tatiana Warren, 19-6.26. Shot Put: 7. Johvonne Hernandez, 45-1. Discus: 3. Johvonne Hernandez, 160-4; 15. Kristen Michalski, 106-9.
Men's Agate
100m: 10. Richard Polidore, 10.88. 800m: 5. Valerij Petrulevich, 1:50.44q. 400m Hurdles: 10. Chris Telesford, 56.23. High Jump: 7. Matt Troha, 6-5. Long Jump: 10. Joshua Johnson, 22-7.75; 11. Richard Polidore, 22-7.75. Shot Put: 1. Tim Adrian, 58-10. Discus: 2. Tim Adrian, 172-4; 8. Tim Biever, 147-6. Decathlon: 9. Craig Stivala, 6,054 points (100m: 6. 11.59; 400m: 4. 50.82; High Jump: 10. 5-10.75; Long Jump: 7. 20-10.75; Shot Put: 8. 37-1.25; 1,500m: 8. 5:02.92; 110m Hurdles: 7. 16.09; Pole Vault: 6. 12-9.50; Discus: 9. 107-7; Javelin: 13. 100-3.
Sunday's Agate
Women 100m: 2. Alison Culley, 11.88. 200m: 4. Alison Culley, 23.38. 2. Opal Jones, 13.61. 400m Relay: 2. (Valerie Boling, Alison Culley, LaNae Walker, Opal Jones) 45.67. High Jump: 2. Jenna Grimaldi, 5-8.75. Triple Jump: 7. Tatiana Warren, 39-10.50. Hammer Throw: 1. Kristen Michalski, 190-1; 2. Johvonne Hernandez, 189-2 .
Men's Agate
800m: 5. Valerij Petrulevich, 1:50.15. 3,200m Relay: 10. (Sean Miller, Brian McNeil, 3. Sami Termanini, Chris Telesford) 7:47.03. Pole Vault: 5. Adam Bingaman, 15-3. Triple Jump: 4. Joshua Johnson, 49-7.25; 10. Richard Polidore, 47-2.25. Hammer Throw: 7. Santos Rodriguez, 167-8.
