Mountain Hawks complete successful weekend at Patriot League Championships
Posted: 02/20/2011
ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Lehigh track and field teams completed competition at the Patriot League Indoor Track Championships on Sunday afternoon. The women’s team finished in third place while the men’s squad finished fourth. Both the men’s and women’s squads from Navy were crowned Patriot League champs.
“I am very pleased with how our teams finished this weekend,” said Lehigh track and field head coach Matt Utesch. “We finished in the top half on the men’s and women’s side, which was big. For the women’s, it was big to finish in front of a very strong Army team. This weekend was definitely a step in the right direction for us.”
For the weekend, Lehigh had nine total All-Patriot League performances, with seven coming on the women’s side and two coming on the men’s side.
On the women’s side, freshman Jessica Kendzor was named women’s Rookie of the meet for her performances. Kendzor finished second in the women’s 1000 meter run with a time of 2:53.39, earning eight team points for Lehigh.
In the women’s 3000 meter run, junior Katherine Pierce represented Lehigh well, as she posted a time of 10:04.24 in the event, good enough for a second place finish. Pierce posted that time after having another solid second place finish in the 5000 meter run in yesterday’s events.
Lehigh’s 4x400 meter relay team of Elizabeth McManus, Khaaleedah Smith, Kristin Slotnick and Melissa Knapp finished in a solid second place with a time of 3:54.41, nearly a half-second behind Navy. In the women’s distance medley, Kendzor, Danielle Albergo, Lauren Pietrosh and Andrea Mascaro finished in second place as a team.
Over on the men’s side, Niall Buckley earned 10 points for the Mountain Hawks, scoring a time of 1:53.09 in the 800 meter run, earning him first place honors.
“Niall Buckley definitely rose above the expectation in the 800 meter event,” said Utesch. “It was really great to see him do that for us. It was a great performance on his part.”
Over in the 3000 meter run, Evan Flach posted a time of 8:16.40 to earn him a third place finish.
In the field events, Stephen Tutunjian posted a distance of 14.89 meters in the men’s triple jump, earning him second place in that event. Christopher Buck finished fourth in the men’s shot put.
Women’s Team Rankings
1) Navy 157
2) Bucknell 117
3) Lehigh 95
4) Army 67
5) Colgate 58
6) Lafayette 50
7) Holy Cross 58
8) American 28
Men’s Team Rankings
1) Navy 171
2) Army 165
3) Bucknell 151
4) Lehigh 46.50
5) American 29.50
6) Lafayette 29
7) Colgate 20
8) Holy Cross 8
First-Team All-Patriot League: Niall Buckley (800), Alexandra Doersam (long jump)
Second-Team All-Patriot League: Stephen Tutunjian (triple jump), E'Lana Lemon (weight throw), Jessica Kendzor (1,000), Katherine Pierce (3,000), Katherine Pierce 5,000), Elizabeth McManus, Khaaleedah Smith, Kristin Slotnick, Melissa Knapp (1,600 relay), Jessica Kendzor, Danielle Albergo, Lauren Pietrosh, Andrea Mascaro, Lehigh (DMR)