The University of Rhode Island men’s and women’s track and field teams hosted the Coaches’ Tribute Meet Saturday, at the Mackal Field House, where they booth excelled.
On the men’s side, in particular it was an extremely impressive meet with the team destroying the competition, winning handily with a score of 225.5, while Brown University came in a distant second with just 102 points. This was also the third straight win for Rhode Island.
“As the season goes on, performances and intensity begin to ramp up, that is the nice thing about our sport,†head coach John Copeland said. “Performances are starting to get pretty good and we are pretty excited about what we have seen.â€
The meet also showcased the depth the Rams have as in the 60-meter dash; they swept all three places with junior DeAngelo Berry, and sophomores Nigel Hill and Nigel Reilly coming in first, second and third respectively.
The Rams also had winners in shotput, pole vault and high jump with senior Sam Snyder, freshman Ryan Wilkes and sophomore Jacob Reilly winning each of the respective events.
Senior Kebba Nasso also displayed a noteworthy performance, finishing second in the 500-meter dash, while fellow Ram and sophomore Jaleel Felton rounded out the top three.
On the other side, the women’s team was not as prosperous, coming in third with a total of 117.5, behind second place Brown with 140 and first place University of Massachusetts-Amherst who won the event with 168.5, but they had an impressive showing, nevertheless.
“Saturday was productive,†assistant coach John Melnick said. “People were in events based on where we think they need to be to help them for Atlantic 10’s, the ECAC’s and New England’s (Championships). It was productive. We were certainly pleased.â€
A top performer as usual, senior Mariah Claudio, fresh off setting a school record last week, once again continued her torrid pace and outstanding career by winning the 400-meter dash. In addition to Claudio, fellow senior Karleigh Manfredi earned first place in the pole vault while junior Briana Robitaille had a fantastic effort in the 60-meter dash, finishing second. Sophmore Karlie Fowler and Amber Sekoll also had respectable performances in the pole vault, as the tandem just missed placing in the top three, finishing fourth and sixth respectively.
The men’s and women’s teams both compete on Friday with the men competing in the Gotham Cup, while the women take part in the David Hemery Valentine Invitational.