Men’s Track and Field Nabs Team Title Behind Flurry of Victories
Jan 31, 2015
MT. VERNON, Iowa – Freshman Ernest Winters won two races on the track while weight thrower Mario-John Otchere and pole vaulter Nicholas Kazmierczak dominated their respective events to lead the University of Dubuque men’s track and field team to the Cornell Hilltop Invite team title on Saturday afternoon.
The Spartans (205 points) outdistanced themselves from the four-team pack by 63 points over second-place Simpson College.
Winters won his second 60 meter dash (7.00) of the year with a personal record and also ran the lead leg of the winning 4x200-meter relay team with Deshond Robinson, Daniel Casanova, and Jamey Foster (1:33.13).
Otchere asserted his dominance in the weight throw after tossing a personal best of 16.44m/53’11.25”, over three-feet farther than his former personal best. Otchere won the Hilltop Invite by over five-and-a-half feet and his mark sits second in school history. Connor Hirt (14.74m/48’4.5”) and Alex Link (14.49m/47’6.5”) garnered second and fourth place showings, respectively.
Kazmierczak (4.30m/14’1.25”) beat out fellow teammate Alexander Schlueter (4.00m/13’1.5”) by nearly a foot in the pole vault to capture his first win of the year.
Alec Bass also came up big with a victory in the mile (4:31.81) while the 4x400-meter relay team of reigning IIAC Track Performer of the Week Robinson, Foster, Andy Sierra, and Jacob Mentzer (3:31.66) beat out Simpson’s team by just 0.10 seconds.
Other notables included Payton Nevills second place finish in the 3000 meters (9:05.45) and Jeremy Lawson’s runner-up showing thanks to a personal best in the high jump (1.98m/6’6”). Senior multi-event specialist Tyler Dobratz snagged a pair of Top-3 finishes in the 60 meter hurdles (8.89) and shot put (13.18m/43’3”), while placing fourth in the long jump (6.19m/20’3.75”)
The Spartans travel to the Grinnell Invite next Saturday at 11:00 a.m.
