BOSTON – The University at Albany
men continued their string of dominance and the Boston University women
returned to glory as 2012 America East Indoor Track and Field champions.
Saturday concluded the two-day meet held at Boston U.’s Track and Tennis
Center.
Albany
racked up 187.50 points en route to winning its seventh straight conference indoor
title and ninth in the past 10 years. Boston University finished as runner-up
with 151.50 points followed by Binghamton with 108.50 points. New Hampshire
took fourth with a total of 96.50 points while UMBC collected 90 points for
fifth place. Maine (57 points), Stony Brook (43), Vermont (30) and Hartford
(16) rounded out the championship field.
Boston
U. tallied 164 points and held off a second-day push by Albany to take the
crown. The Danes finished with 159.50 points scoring second-place honors. UMBC
finished third with 106.50 points and Vermont placed fourth with 93 points.
Binghamton collected 74.50 points and pulled ahead of New Hampshire (67
points). Stony Brook (54 points), Maine (47) and Hartford (14.50) complete the
women’s standings.
The
coaching staffs of both championship teams were honored with the Men’s and Women’s
Coaching Staff of the Year awards.
Boston
U.’s Allison Barwise collected the most points out of any competitor in the
competition with 24 thanks to her performances in the high jump, long jump and
pentathlon. After finishing second in the pentathlon and third in the long jump
yesterday, Barwise set an America East Championship record in the high jump
today. She cleared 1.82 meters to take home gold.
UMBC
rookie Mercedes Jackson and Boston U.’s Shelby Walton put on a show in the
women’s 60 and 200 meter dashes. Jackson broke the facility record for the
second straight day with a 7.49 in the 60 before Walton won the 200 with a time
of 23.99 seconds, just .01 ahead of her UMBC opponent. Jackson took home the
meet’s Most Outstanding Rookie Award.
The
coaches voted Stony Brook’s Lucy Van Dalen the Most Outstanding Track Performer
after she set two championship records on day two. Van Dalen set the mile
standard with her time of 4:36.43 and broke her sister’s record in the 3,000
meter run with a time of 9:17.35.
Binghamton’s
Jessica Hennig took top honors in the women’s 400 meter dash for the third consecutive
year in a time of 55.14 seconds. Meanwhile, Albany’s Sherez Mohamed set a new
Championship record in the 500 meter dash clocking in at 1:12.29.
In
other field events today, Patricia McNish from Albany leapt to victory in the
women’s triple jump (12.29m) a day after winning gold in the long jump. UMBC’s Amanda Deller followed
up her gold-medal performance in the weight throw yesterday with an equally as
impressive showing in the shot put today. Deller, the meet’s Most Outstanding
Field Performer, won with a heave of 16.83 meters.
Vermont
picked up the maximum ten points in the 4x800 relay after breaking the championship
record with a time of 8:58.53.
On
the men’s side, Boston U.’s R.J. Page won championship gold in the 60 and 200
meter dashes and was also a member of the winning 4x400 relay team to earn Most
Outstanding Track Performer and the most points of any male competitor. Page
breezed to a new championship record in the 200, clocking in at 21.29 seconds.
The Terrier men took the top four spots in the 200.
Leading
the way for the champion great Danes was Alfonso Scannapieco. After winning the
pole vault title on day one, Scannapieco held on to his day-one lead in the
heptathlon to win with 5,202 total points and collect Most Outstanding Field
Performer honors.
Highlighting
the distance races were Stony Brook’s Eric Speakman and Boston U.’s Rich Peters.
Speakman won the 3,000 in 8:16.97 to earn the Most Outstanding Rookie award and
Peters ran another sub-four-minute mile (3:59. 24) to set a championship record.
UMBC’s
Trae Proctor successfully defended his 60 meter hurdles title (8.08) while
Maine’s Trevor England took the triple jump (14.45m), New Hampshire Brice Paey
set a championship record in the shot put (17.87m) and Albany’s Alexander Bowen
took gold in the high jump (2.08m).
Both
the 4x400 and 4x800 relay titles belonged to Boston U. The 4x800 team, anchored
by Peters, ran a 7:30.56 to break the conference record.
Men’s Final
Standings
1) Albany, 187,50
2) Boston
University, 151.50
3) Binghamton, 108.50
4) New
Hampshire, 96.50
5) UMBC, 90
6) Maine, 57
7) Stony
Brook,43
8) Vermont, 30
9) Hartford, 16
Women’s Final
Standings
1) Boston
University, 164
2) Albany, 159.50
3) UMBC, 106.50
4) Vermont, 93
5) Binghamton, 74.50
6) New
Hampshire, 67
7) Stony
Brook, 54
8) Maine,47
9) Hartford, 14.50