College Indoor Track & Field
Rider at IC4A/ECAC
Seven All-East Performances
BOSTON, Mass.— The Rider University men's and women's indoor track and field teams competed at the IC4A/ECAC Championships this weekend, hosted by Boston University and brought home six more All-East performances after scoring an All-East performer on Saturday.
“I'm really excited for the team and what they accomplished this weekend,” said head coach Bob Hamer. “Seven All-East performances is a great step forward for the program. We have been working hard to grow as individuals and as a team and I was happy with all the efforts.”
On Sunday for the Rider women, the distance medley relay of junior Stephanie Welte (Philadelphia, Pa./St. Basil's Academy), senior Ashley Edwards (Westfield), freshman Victoria Brewer (Bensalem, Pa./Bensalem) and senior Emily Ritter (Millsboro, Del./Sussex Tech) placed third with a Rider record time of 11:49.76, earning All-East honors.
“The women's DMR was a surprise finish,” said Hamer. “Welte struggled a bit on the lead off leg but Edwards and Brewer ran nice legs to stick Ritter in a good position. Monmouth held her off in the final straight but it was a great anchor.”
For the Rider men on Sunday, the 4x800 relay of freshman Anfernee Joseph (Somerset/Franklin), sophomore Scott Wood (Florence/Holy Cross), junior Tom McLaughlin (Egg Harbor Township/Egg Harbor) and senior Derek Lake (Middletown, N.Y./Pine Bush) set a Rider record (7:36.94), placing fifth and earning All-East. The group was eighth with a time of 7:39.36 on Saturday to qualify for the finals.
“The men's 4x8 was tremendous,” Hamer said. “To set a Rider record and earn All-East, I'm really excited for the group. They ran great yesterday and did it again today. They did everything to be ready for the moment and were able to take advantage of it.”
Also for the Rider men, sophomore Devon Jefferson (Franklin Park/Franklin) took fifth place in the 60 meter high hurdles (8.19) to earn All-East. Jefferson was eighth in the semifinals of the 60 meter high hurdles (8.22) to qualify for the finals after placing second in the preliminaries with a time of 8.20 on Saturday.
“Devon has been consistent all season, has worked very hard and is committed and dedicated to his craft. It's great to see him earn All-East,” Hamer said.
Senior George Solujich (East Windsor/Notre Dame) was sixth in the shot put (16.47m) to earn All-East.
“George had a nice day,” Hamer said. “He needed a big throw on his third attempt to move up into scoring position. He had a really good season.”
Junior Darien Edwards (South Orange/St. Benedict's) was seventh in the finals of the 500 meter (1:03.67) to earn All-East. Edwards (South Orange/St. Benedict's) was also seventh in the semifinals (1:04.08) on Saturday and sophomore Johnathan Jackson (Roselle/Magnet) was seventh in the 800 meter (1:52.16) to earn All-East after finishing eighth (1:51.65) on Saturday in the semifinals.
“Darien ran a really nice race,” Hamer said. “He was a little off pace early but then rallied in the second half to close well and grab All-East. He missed the Rider record by .02 of a second. And Jackson, he had a great weekend. He was a little out of position early in the race and made a tactical error that cost him at the end. I'm excited for him; he will grow and learn from this experience. All-East is an outstanding accomplishment for him.”
Also for the Rider women on Sunday, freshman Cleopatra Morrison (Long Branch) was ninth in the finals of the 60 meter dash (7.84) after a ninth place finish (7.67) on Saturday in the semifinals.
“Cleo was a little slow out of the blocks and unfortunately the slightest error, you pay for it. This is still a great accomplishment for her to make it this far as a freshman,” said Hamer.
For the Rider women on Saturday at ECACs, senior Taylor Harmon (Robbinsville) earned All-East honors in the high jump with a height of 5'6”, placing seventh, Ritter was 11th in the mile (4:53.61), missing the finals by .01 of a second and junior Nicolette Mateescu (Kendall Park/South Brunswick) was 19th in the 5000 meter (17:24.10).
Other men's results included sophomore Wil Asamoah (Edison) finishing 11th in the semifinals of the 60 meter high hurdles (8.25) after placing fifth in the preliminaries of the event (8.21), senior Andrew Pozo (Forked River/Toms River HS South) was 19th in the weight throw with a distance of 54'00.50”, sophomore Lamont Higgins (New Brunswick/St. Joseph HS (Metuchen)) was 21st in the 400 meter dash (49.43) and freshman Christin Patrick (East Orange/Seton Hall Prep.) was 21st in the 60 meter high hurdles with a time of 8.53.
The men's 4x400 relay of Higgins, Edwards, Jackson and freshman Christopher Reubel (Moorestown) was 11th with a time of 3:16.81.
The men's distance medley relay of senior Dylan Hallahan (Wrightstown/Northern Burlington Regional), Asamoah, freshman David Paduani (Egg Harbor Township/Egg Harbor) and senior Anthony Dentino (Sewell/Washington Township) was 13th with a time of 10:06.50.
“It is very important for this kind of success,” Hamer said. “It becomes infectious. One athlete sees someone else have success and they realize they can do it also. We need to take this experience and carry it forward to the outdoor season.”
Rider begins the outdoor competition on March 28 at the Lafayette Invitational.
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