The University of Massachusetts men’s track and field team achieved notable results at two meets over the weekend: the URI Coaches Invitational in North Kingston, Rhode Island, and the BU Valentine Invitational.
At the URI Coaches Invitational, several Minutemen secured top finishes. Matthew Acquah earned third place in the triple jump with a mark of 46’11.50″. In the shot put, Aiden Donovan also claimed bronze with a throw of 52’5.25″, while Aaron Fishler finished third in the weight throw at 52’7″. Quinn Hardt placed eighth in the high jump by clearing 6’4.5″. Hunter Feitel took third in pole vault with a height of 14’7.5″.
The team performed strongly in distance events, taking five of the top nine spots in the mile run. Altamo Aschkenasy led this group, winning with a time of 4:16.21. Teammates Alec Carew (fourth), Riley Cole (fifth), Tyler Medeiros (seventh), and Cyrus Hansen (ninth) followed closely behind.
In sprint events, Colin Kirn and Michael Sanchez secured first and second place finishes respectively in the 400-meter dash with times of 50.54 and 50.58 seconds. Jason DeJesus won gold in the 60-meter dash at 6.85 seconds, while Mark Sten rounded out the top eight.
Middle-distance races saw Tyler Medeiros finish second in the 800 meters at 1:56.81, followed by Logan Walsh (third), Emmett Johnson (fourth), and Altamo Aschkenasy (fifth). Collin Catherwood earned bronze in the men’s 1k at 2:26.85; Colin Kirn placed fourth.
Godot Gaskins and Winston Lewis finished first and second respectively in the men’s 200-meter dash with times of 22.06 and 22.73 seconds.
Collin Catherwood also claimed gold in the men’s three-kilometer race with a time of 8:30.03; Attikos Kaye took silver at 8:37.97.
Relay teams added to UMass’s success during the meet as well:
– Emmett Johnson, Logan Walsh, Archie Pinder, and Parker Broderick combined for an eight-minute-six-second finish to win gold in what was reported as a women’s relay event.
– Elijah Wolinski, Noah Mulligan, Winston Lewis, and Godot Gaskins ran a time of three minutes forty-nine seconds to win gold for their squad.
At Boston University’s Valentine Invitational, Mark Sten, Michael Sanchez, Michael Harden, and Godot Gaskins set a new program record by finishing fourth overall in their heat for the men’s four-by-four-hundred meter relay with a time of three minutes twelve seconds.
Looking ahead on their schedule, UMass’s women’s track team will compete next at Brown University’s invitational meet on February 21st.
