GAME OF THE WEEK MIT Track and Field Takes Top Spot Against Bates and Colby
The MIT men’s and women’s track and field teams kicked off their 2009 campaigns with a pair of resounding first place finishes over Bates and Colby Colleges on Saturday at Bates. The men’s total of 204 points far outpaced second-place Bates, who finished with 128 team points; Colby finished in third with just 21 points. MIT’s women totaled 151 points while Bates finished second with 123 and Colby again came in third with 89.
The men’s team relied on strong performances by its runners, who claimed the top spot in all but three events on the track. Stephen A. Morton ’10 (23.04 seconds) and Khalil A. Dozier ’12 (23.54) in the 200-meter sprint were one of four pairs of MIT runners to finish one-two, with Morton claiming his second of four event wins. In the 400m, Daved N. Reshef G (53.09) just outpaced teammate Nicholas W. Leonard ’11 (53.41). William S. Phipps ’09 (1:24.67) took first in the 600m while Matthew F. Bieniosek ’09 (2:00.69) took the 800m by almost two seconds over Stephen R. Serene ’12. Phipps, Leonard, John A. Granata ’11 and Kevin G. Kleinguetl ’11 combined to lead the Engineers to victory in the 1600-meter relay.
Morton helped MIT solidify its first-place standing in the field events, out-jumping his counterparts in both the long jump (6.78 meters) and the triple jump (14.47m). Anthony D. McDonald ’10 was the first of four Engineers to earn points in the shot put with a distance of 13.58 meters.
On the women’s side, Jacqueline M. Wentz ’10 led a solid showing in the distance events, capturing 1000m (2:59.94) and the one-mile run (5:10.01). Anna Holt-Gosselin ’11 (10:43.54) crossed the finish line just ahead of teammate Jennifer A. Doyle ’09 (10:43.65) in the 3000m run. Portia M. Jones ’12 also had a strong performance on the track, winning the 200m (27.62), and placing second in the 55m hurdles (9.00) just behind Amy R. Magnuson ’10 (8.66).
Hazel L. Briner ’11, Alexandra R. Manick ’12, Ajoke O. Williams ’12 and Martha M. Gross ’12 combined to give MIT a victory in the 4x200 meter relay.
In the field events, Emily Hwang ’09 helped Tech take the top three spots in the pole vault, clearing 3.34 meters to take first place. Magnuson secured a second-place finish in the long jump, with a distance of 4.78 meters.
MIT will take part in the Terrier Classic hosted by Boston University next weekend, starting Friday, Jan. 23.