Track and Field Posts Strong Finishes at Kentucky, Roxbury Meets

This time four years ago, Nerlens Noel, a 6’11” center from the Boston suburb of Everett, was shining at the University of Kentucky as a member of the Wildcats basketball team. This weekend, several other residents of the Boston metropolitan area—members of the Harvard track and field team—converged on Lexington looking to leave their mark at the Rod McCravy Memorial Indoor Track and Field Meet.

Several sprinters and mid-distance runners posted strong performances in Kentucky on a weekend when other members of the squad competed at the Joe Donahue Games 925 miles from Lexington in Roxbury. Members of the field team shone at the event, with many posting personal bests.

“The team did incredibly [well],” sophomore Ian West said. “I think this year what we’re doing this year as opposed to last year is we’re setting a precedent to win. People are setting records for themselves and doing well. We’re coming to the meets with the mentality to win and that’s something that’s really incredible to see.”

ROD MCCRAVY MEMORIAL MEET

Sophomore Gabby Thomas led the way for the sprinters, taking third place in the 200-meter, a race in which Kentucky sophomore Kianna Gray took first. Thomas was just two-one thousandths of a second out of second place. The Florence, Mass. native also took 12th place in the 60-meter dash. Senior Jade Miller kept the ball rolling for Harvard, taking third place in the 600-yard run behind two runners from USC. The success for Thomas and Miller is nothing new. Both were All-Ivy picks last season in indoor and were on the All-American team for outdoor. Fellow All-American Nikki Okwelogu was sixth in the shot put and 13th in the weight throw. The women’s 4x400-meter relay team, which featured Thomas and Miller as well as freshmen Karina Joiner and Zoe Hughes, finished ninth of 18 teams in an event that USC won.

On the men’s side, sophomore Myles Marshall led the way, taking Harvard’s third bronze of the day, with his coming in the 800. Marshall set a personal best with a 1:48.17. Freshman Michael Kolor and senior Thomas Negron took the 16th and 17th spots, respectively, with 32 hundredths of a second separating the pair. The top men’s 4x400 relay team took 12th place in a 21-team field. Senior Efe Uwaifo was fourth in the triple jump.

Kolor wasn’t the only freshman to have a coming out party in the Bluegrass State. Classmate Judy Pendergast earned a fifth place finish in the women’s 3,000-meter, an event she was running for the first time as a member of Harvard. A duo of freshmen also posted strong showings in field events. Simi Fajemisin was 12th in the women’s long jump while Hughes was fourth in the pentathlon, the only Harvard rookie in the top seven.

“We’re all feeling a little more comfortable on the team,” sophomore Allison Rabe said. “A lot of us are new to the team and it took a little bit to kind of know how to work with one another and get in the swing of things in terms of how college competition goes. I think we’re finally doing well for ourselves.”

JOE DONAHUE GAMES

Harvard field athletes, especially underclassman ones, shone during the Friday meet in Roxbury. Freshman Donagh Mahon jumped 6’6” to claim first place in the high jump while classmate Anthony DeNitto won the long jump competition. Freshman Gunnar Allison earned a bronze in the weight throw after a 15.91 meter attempt. West blew away the competition en route to a victory in the pole vault, setting a personal record in the process.

“Right now, competition has been good to me,” West said. “Practice has been going well and I feel like I’m in a groove right now. I’m really quite excited to keep that energy going and seeing what the rest of the season holds in store.”

Not to be outdone by the men, junior Marlena Sabatino took home gold in the women’s pole vault while classmate Floriane Kameni was third in the long jump. Every Harvard thrower had at least one personal record on the day, with sophomore Allison Rabe taking 11th in shot put and freshman Martha Kebeh finishing 12th in weight throw.

“The seniors have definitely been helpful with giving advice,” Rabe said. “They do a lot of in-practice coaching. They’re really good because they’ve been through this and know what works and what doesn’t so they’ve been really helpful.”

Both the men’s and women’s teams that Harvard sent to the Joe Donahue Games took sixth place in eight-team fields. Junior Randall Raymond was seventh in the 500 meters while sophomore Liam Hackett took fifth in the 1,000. Harvard’s 4x400-meter relay team finished sixth in a 13-team field. On the women’s side, sophomore Miranda Sadler won the 800 with a 2:17.68.

—Staff writer Stephen J. Gleason can be reached at stephen.gleason@thecrimson.com.