UConn Wins AAC Track & Field Championship
The University of Connecticut men’s track team won the inaugural American Athletic Conference Championship on Saturday at Armory Collegiate. The squad finished with 158 points to earn the win, besting second-place Louisville (123 points) and Houston (116 points). The UConn coaching staff of Greg Roy, Rich Miller and Renny Waldron were honored as the American Athletic Conference Coaching Staff of the Year.
The Huskies won a pair of events en route to the championship win, claiming the 4×400 meter relay and owning the mile run. The 4×400 team finished in 3:14.23 to seal the win in the final competition of the day, while Mike O’Donnell’s gold medal in the mile run started off the final day of the meet. O’Donnell finished in 4:13.21 to own the top of the podium while Nick Bertolini and Bryan Fowler earned third and fourth places, respectively.
Connecticut posted a quartet of second-place finishes in the 200 meter dash, the shot put, the 35 lb. weight throw and the heptathlon to contribute to the scoring. Darnell Cummings paced UConn in the 200 meter, grabbing second place in a time of 21.10. Cummings would go on to earn a bronze medal in the 60 meter dash as the lone Husky to qualify for the finals. Patrick Hayes finished the 200 meter in 21.74 to grab fifth place and Chinedu Amonu added a sixth place effort as well. Amonu made big contributions in the 400 meter run with a third place finish in 48.22. The Huskies went 3-4-5, with Kyle Twombly and Robert Hovanec accounting for the fourth and fifth place finishes, respectively.
On the track, Eric Masington and Oluwatosin Edwards provided the other two second-place finishes for UConn. Eric Masington grabbed the silver with a launch of 17.30M in the shot put while Oluwatosin Edwards earned his second place finish on 17.80M launch.
The team dominated the 800 meter run, sweeping third place through sixth place. Alvaro Chavez lead the UConn effort with a third place finish in 1:51.93. Robert Rhodes , Paul DeSalvo ,and Philip Caldwell added the consecutive finishes.
UConn’s heptathletes put forth an exception showing, with Kris Horn claiming second place by earning 5,266 points. Patrick Meyer grabbed fourth with 4,927 and Sean Walsh took fifth with 4,848. Sam Smith rounded out the effort with a seventh place finish.
“This was a tremendous team win,” said Head Coach Greg Roy. “While we only won the mile and the 4×400 meter relay, 27 of the 32 athletes we entered scored. We started Day Two with a monster performance by the milers, with Mike O’Donnell upsetting the field for the win. Throughout the day the heptathletes kept chopping away, leading to a huge 19 point haul that put us ahead for good. A lot of kids sacrificed individual goals to contribute in multiple events. For example, Robert Rhodes and Chinedu Amonu ran three events each. Every member of our team – right down to some of the non-scorers- was invaluable.”
UConn Finishes:
60 Meter Dash
3. Darnell Cummings – 6.79
P. Patrick Hayes – 7.02
P. Trelonni Elliott – 7.06
200 Meter Dash
2. Darnell Cummings – 21.10
5. Patrick Hayes -21.74
6. Chinedu Amonu – 21.76
400 Meter Dash
3. Chinedu Amonu – 48.22
4. Kyle Twombly – 48.73
5. Robert Hovanec – 48.76
P. Dele Owoye – 49.61
P. Aaeron Sykes – 49.98
800 Meter Run
3. Alvaro Chavez – 1:51.93
4. Robert Rhodes – 1:52.88
5. Paul DeSalvo – 1:53.74
6. Philip Caldwell – 1:53.81
Mile Run
1. Mike O’Donnell – 4:13.21
3. Nick Bertolini – 4:13.60
4. Bryan Fowler – 4:13.62
3000 Meter Run
6. Bryan Fowler – 8:22.82
9. David Cotton – 8:25.65
12. Mike O’Donnell – 8:30.83
5000 Meter Run
11. David Cotton – 15:04.14
60 M Hurdles
6. Randall Wall – 8.24
4×400 Meter Relay
1. UConn – 3:14.23
Distance Medley Relay
3. UConn – 10:05.06
High Jump
5. Tobey Belton – 2.05M
5. Demario Gray – 2.05M
Pole Vault
3. Craig Hunter – 5.10M
4. Cory Duggan – 5.10 M
7. Tim Murphy – 4.80M
11. Connor Grunwald – 4.80M
Long Jump
10. Harley Lacroix – 7.00M
15. Amanze Williams – 6.55M
Triple Jump
4. Harley Lacroix – 15.17M
7. Amanze Williams – 14.87M
10. Treval Hatcher – 14.27M
Shot Put
2. Eric Masington – 17.30M
35 lb. Weight Throw
2. Oluwatosin Edwards – 17.80M
Heptathlon
2. Kris Horn – 5266
4. Patrick Meyer – 4927
5. Sean Walsh – 4848
7. Sam Smith – 4801
Reprinted with permission from UConnHuskies.com
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