HEPS Track and Field 2013-14

quick call out wrote:

FYI Geoghegan and Managan are listed as JR and FR, respectively, because that is their season in terms of eligibility (e.g. Mangan has skied the past 3 years and this is his first year of indoor track)

Yeah, that always keeps throwing me for a loop, since a lot of articles and some results also list them as seniors. I wonder if both of them will try to use graduate eligibility or not. I believe Mangan would only have indoor eligibility though since I believe he has done 3 seasons of XC and outdoor track (I could be wrong about the XC part). According to TFRRS, it looks like Geoghegan has a full year (XC-indoor-outdoor) eligibility left.

I find it quite impressive how we got 4 milers into NCAAs. I originally was not sure if Michael Williams would get a spot since I believe he was ranked 18th or 19th nationally, but was the 2nd to last declared qualifier. Good for him!

How well do we think the Dartmouth women's DMR will do? Two years ago, they got 3rd behind D'Ag's strong kick. This time, D'Ag will be doing the 3k and 5k on top of the DMR.

Flotrack compiled a good mashup video of Heps, focusing mainly on the coaches.

http://hepstrack.com/blog/2014/03/06/heps-sfx/

"How well do we think the Dartmouth women's DMR will do? Two years ago, they got 3rd behind D'Ag's strong kick. This time, D'Ag will be doing the 3k and 5k on top of the DMR."

Dartmouth may be entered in the DMR but that doesn't mean that Abbey is doing it. They have six runners entered...the NCAA allows substitutions. Good for Abbey for helping them get there and now more runners will get an NCAA experience if she goes after her open events.

Thanks for the link!

A depleted Cornell men's squad (no BHR or Mozia; no 400, 4x800, or WT entry) leads after the scoring events of the IC4A's first day, with 30 points to Liberty's 25. Austin Jamerson won the heptathlon (5179 points, which I believe breaks his own school frosh record) and Mike Rabbitt was third. Montez Blair was second in the high jump. Brian Eimstad won the unseeded 5,000m in 14:13 and placed fourth overall. Weinlandt only managed 1:57 in the 800 prelims, but other Big Red MD guys made the finals of the 1,000 and mile. Cornell also has finalists in the 500, 200, and hurdles, plus DMR/4x4.

Harvard is the only other Ivy team to score and stands eighth with eight points: Ben Glauser took second in the weight with 19.46m, a nice comeback from last week's disappointment. The Cantabs have also qualified men for some of tomorrow's finals. A smattering of Ivy entrants otherwise, with no Brown or Princeton that I could see. UConn looks like the non-Ivy team to beat, with many advancing to tomorrow's finals.

Ivyguy wrote: A smattering of Ivy entrants otherwise, with no Brown or Princeton that I could see.

Princeton rarely sends anyone to IC4A. Don't think they sent anyone this year.

Well, they may not have been at full strength, but the Cornell men still won the IC4A meet handily with 76 points, beating UCONN, Albany, and Liberty by more than 20. The pair of Heps/IC4A wins is an indoor first for the Big Red.

http://www.lancertiming.com/results/winter14/ECACIC4A/

Max Hairston (60H) and Austin Jamerson (heptathlon) both won their events. Montez Blair took second in the HJ--Nathan Taylor limited him to taking only three jumps!--and Peter Roach took 3d in the PV with 5.25, matching the school record. The Cornell distance/mid-distance crew, lightly represented at Heps, was much in evidence here, scoring in the 1,000, mile, 5,000, and DMR.

Meanwhile the Big Red women rebounded from their Heps disappointment, following a fifth place in the Ivy meet to a second (to UCONN) at ECACs. This time their distance runners produced, including a 1-2 at 3,000, but the most noteworthy performance may have been in the 4x4. Cornell ran 3:40 in the heats (with a couple of substitutes!), then came back the next day for an Ivy record 3:36.63, winning by 5+ seconds.

How does Cornell win with such a poor showing in the 800, 1000, mile, 3k, 5k? At least this year, they scored more than one point.

from a previous post:

Heps Diistance points:

Columbia 54

Dartmouth 37

Princeton 21

They are getting a lot of help from Columbia and Dartmouth taking significant points away from Princeton in the distance events.

Couple of Day 1 NCAA results (Ivy)

MMiSF John Gregorek (COLU) 4:04.36Q

Will Geoghegan (DART) 4:09.94Q

Steve Mangan (DART) 4:10.22

Michael Williams (PRIN) 4:13.07

MHJ 4. Montez Blair (CORN) 2.23/7-3 3/4 (top three were all 2.29/7-6, or better)

10tie. Maalik Reynolds (PENN)

Columbia DMR finishes 5th without running Gregorek. Were solid 2nd most of the way,

Bruno Hortelano-Roig (Cornell) runs an Ivy-record 20.77 in the 200 semi, qualifies for final; runs 20.75 there, breaking the record again and finishing 8th.

After Day 1, Cornell is 12th. Stephen Mozia is Cornell's only remaining competitor.

Mozia, who was ninth after the first three throws and the last man into the finals, finished second in the shot. He threw over 20m again, though well behind his Heps PR, and had no shot (sorry, unintentional) at Ryan Crouser of Texas, who completely dominated with three throws over 21m in the finals.

I'm thinking the Big Red's 14 points may hold up for a top-20 finish?

Things went the best they could have realistically gone points-wise for Cornell's 3 guys. Absolutely great meet for them.

Super job by Geoghegan and Gregorek to score in the mile as well. Geoghegan didn't do as well as he hoped in individual events at the Heps, coming in as a 3:58/7:51 guy and all, but then he storms back with a real-deal 5th place at the Big Show. Gregorek pretty much made it into NCs because of the favorable conversion on Dartmouth's track, which has generously wide turns. But he obviously hit his season peak at the right time and sure proved he belonged at the meet.

This was posted in a different thread, but I thought it was worth repeating here. It has been a while since the Heps has resembled the top tier conferences of the NCAA in throwing. I has been decades since Princeton's Augie Wolf made it from Heps to the Olympics and Dartmouth's Adam Nelson and Harvard's Nick Sweeney took the same path.

So it is worth reminding Heps nation that we are living in rare and memorable times. We not only have nationally ranked throwers in our midst, but for the first time in Heps history we have the potential to send several male and female throwers to the top of the NCAAs and to world level competitions within a 4 year span.

Everyone knows about the feats of Stephen Mozia over the past two years. However, The Cornell bomber is just the first of many names that I predict will break through and put Heps throws on the map this year and beyond There are several young guns who are just now maturing after promising Freshman and Sophomore years and will blossom into US and world level tossers. The list below represents just those kids who made it to the US Top 50 list in 2013 and are likely to climb higher in 2014 as well as those who we expect to make the list this year.

Where to begin? Let's start with the WOMEN:

Adabelle Ekechukwu (Harvard)2014 Indoor National Rank #19 Weight/Hammer(not in top 50): A consistent top level weight thrower whose speed, strength and technique gets better each year. I predict that in her senior year Adabelle will throw over 210 feet in the hammer. She's just that good and driven.

Julia Radcliffe (Princeton) 2013 National Rank #2 Hammer:

Already a national and world level thrower in her freshman year, Julia will only perfect her whirling dervish compact and near flawless delivery of the hammer. I have seen her indoors in 2014. While she has not thrown as far as Adabelle, she has had some massive sector fouls. She looks faster, stronger and more confident than ever. I would not be surprised if she does throw 230 consistently and pops a near 245-50 footer.

Nikki Okwelogu, (Harvard) Shot Put:

A simply amazing freshman recruit, she has made her mark indoors as a consistent 50 footer. She looks very solid technically and should give 53 feet a run. The upside for Nikki is that her technique has lots of room for improvement. We could be looking at a 60 footer in 3 years time.

Kelsey Hay (Penn)2013 National Rank #45 Javelin:

Hay was in the top 50 nationally last year (#45) and team mate Kaci Jones was just outside that list. They will factor heavily in the resurgence of the Penn women's team and are poised to climb the charts with bigger flings this season. I predict 160-65 for these Quakers.

FOR THE MEN:

We have to begin with the Cornell bomber -- 2013 National Rank #7 Shot # 8 Discus:

Mr. Mozia is a master craftsman of three outdoor implements: Shot: a potential first time Ivy 70 footer. Discus: a proven 200 footer and hammer, can possibly throw 200 feet as well and still has one more year to thrill throws fans. The belief is that if you present Stephen with any implement and give him 15 minutes he'll figure out how to throw it further than anyone else has. Being an engineering major may have something to do with his ability to understand and apply the physics required to move objects a great distance. Stephen has already put Heps throws back on the map globally and will only continue to get better. Don't miss a chance to watch him throw over the next two years. The likes of Mozia only come around with the same frequency as Halley's comet.

Bob Robbins (Cornell)2013 National Rank #16 Javelin:

Still just a Junior, Robbins has sailed the spear over 233 feet in 2013. It was thought that he was injured early last season. If he remains healthy we could see some major distances from this young man. major talent.

Sam Mattis (Penn)2013 National Rank #16 Discus:

Sophomore Sam Mattis opened up the year with a big throw to set the Penn discus record. He won the Heps with a championship record. Word is that he was hurt for most of early last season and was not able to get in a groove. Like with Robbins, if he remains healthy 2014 should be interesting as both he and Mozia will vie for the title of "Ivy Plate Greats". The existing record of 205 set by Sweeney of Harvard will be a memory well before the end of the season. Watching the heps could give us a preview of the NCAAs in the discus.

Dustin Brode (Harvard)2014 Indoor National Rank #36 Shot Put: Dustin came into the league as a freshman boasting a credential very few high school throwers have: he's a legitimate 70 foot + thrower. If you have never seen his raw power, just take a look at his 71 foot HS throw:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cO48CYLAsRc

Dustin has remained consistently a mid to upper 50s thrower until last outdoors where he broke through with a 60 footer and follwed up this season with another 60 footer indoors. Dustin has the power, the experience and technique to throw much much further. Sometimes an athlete realizes that this is their final shot to make a statement (no pun intended). My money is on Dustin to pop something between 62 to 64 feet by May. A thrower of his caliber owes that to himself. Dustin, unleash the beast and cement your legacy at Harvard.

Rudy Winkler (Cornell) Hammer: High School national record holder at 260 with 12lber and has thrown 213 with the 16lb college implement while in high school! He has no national ranking at this juncture but that will definitely change as the season gets going. The anticipation around Rudy's upcoming season is quite high to say the least. The heir apparent to Connor McCullough of Princeton will take time to find his rhythm with the heavier implement. However, he's a true student of the event and has had stellar coaching. 225-230 world not be inconceivable for Rudy this season. However, no matter what he throws this year let's be patient as the kid has 4 years in Heps nation and will only thrill his fans with each year of growth, maturity and results.

So, it is amazing to have this level of talent all at one time in the Ivy League. Their skills and dedication amaze us. However, we need to keep in mind what it takes to not only throw for an Ivy league school, we also need to be reminded of what these kids give up.

1. No scholarships

2. Loss of at least 20-30 hrs a week to the general student body due to demands of practices, lifting, meets and meetings.

3. Making up academic work until the wee hours in the morning, on buses, in the stands or hotel rooms.

4. Red-shirting not allowed--4 and done.

5. Did I mention no scholarships, of any kind!

However, when you look at the academic prowess that these kids demonstrate you see the same drive as with their athletic efforts: Mozia (Engineering) Ekechukwu (Neurobiology) Bob Robbins (Animal Sciences) Winkler (Biological Engineering) Brode (Human Evolutionary Biology) Mattis (Wharton)and so on.

These kids should be celebrated as they likely all gave up full rides to other institutions for the lure of an Ivy League education to match their prodigious skills. So, let's show our appreciation during the season and make the effort to see these and the other Ivy tossers ply their craft. They do it for the love of the sport and the thrill of getting better. Seeing them compete is the very least we can do.

Pretty sure her name is "Ratcliffe."

You are correct. Ratcliffe it is.

TFRRS has an outdoor Ivy list started:

http://www.tfrrs.org/lists/1278.html

For once, Cornell doesn't dominate the early marks--I don't think they open until next week--so it's easier to get a sense of some of the other folks.

On the men's side, Princeton has posted some fine marks, though it looks like only part of their crew has competed, and Tom Hopkins leads a couple events. For the women Harvard, predictably enough, has had some excellent performances.

But I'm very impressed with Penn so far. Sam Mattis is already just shy of 60m in the discus, and their women are a very strong presence in several events--the lady Quakers have to be taken seriously.

Actually, it's a nice mix of teams, with good marks from each of the squads that have competed. Princeton's annual team tempo for its female distance runners went well, for instance.

Cornell was supposed to open this weekend but the meet got cancelled due to weather.

Mattis' throw 196-08 is #3 in conference history.

Danielle Barbian broke the outdoor 100m mark, 11.65, wind-legal +1.6. Harvard's 4x100 also ran a top-10 all time mark, 46.27.

Also for Harvard, Dean Sullivan and Hannah Meyers are both back and throwing the javelin.

Princeton's Imani Oliver jumped a new wind-legal PR in the triple jump, 41-06. A top 10 all time mark.

Just a few things I've noticed...