LANDOVER, Md.- Monmouth University's men's track & field team captured their third straight Northeast Conference Indoor Championship on Sunday, with the Hawks placing in 15 of the events on the weekend. MU scored 117 points for first place, with Sacred Heart finishing just two points behind.
"The men's team did not have a perfect meet, but we did come up with some great individual performances to win our third straight championship," said head coach Joe Compagni.
MU senior David Gaines (Freehold, N.J./Colts Neck) tallied his first NEC Championship, winning the 800m with a time of 1:55.92. Bill Doherty (Madison, N.J./Madison) claimed seventh in the same event, finishing in 1:59.95. Martin Suarez III (Burlington, N.J./Holy Cross) and Craig Segal (Holmdel, N.J./Holmdel) took third and fourth respectively in the 5,000m, with times of 15:18.89 and 15:30.40.
Fabrice St. Elme (Rahway, N.J./Rahway) took second in the 60m (6.98), while freshman Chris Taiwo (Budd Lake, N.J./Mt. Olive) finished in seventh place (7.13). Darrin Chandler (Hackensack, N.J./Paramus Catholic) was seventh in the 400m with a time of 50.94.
Chris Vuono (Wall, N.J./CBA) finished fifth in the 500m, crossing the finish line in 1:05.78, with Derrik Keich (Tamaqua, Pa./Tamaqua) coming in seventh. Sophomore Ryan Madrid (Clifton, N.J./Paramus Catholic) also placed seventh in the 1 mile, with at ime of 4:25.06. Jude Rene (Hamilton, N.J./Hamilton North) was third in the 60m high hurdles with a time of 8:46. The junior also finished sixth in the long jump with a leap of 21' 4 1/2".
In the weight throw, Chris Keller (Matawan, N.J./Matawan) was second (61' 7") with Ed Skowronski (Hazlet, N.J./Raritan) coming in third with atoss of 58' 9 1/2". The 4x400 relay team took fourth with time of 3:23.81 while the distance medley relay team finished third with a time of 10:39.95.
In the first day of the competition, Monmouth's throwers took three of the top five spots in the shot put with Nick Williams (Adamstown, Md./Urbana) taking first with a toss of 55' 9 3/4". Keller was third with a throw of 53' 4 1/2" and Kyle Hirschklau (Morristown, N.J./Morristown) was fifth with a toss 51' 4 1/2".
Graduate student Segal finished third in the 3,000m (8:40.55), while Suarez III finished fifth in the event, crossing the line at 8:47.27. Dan Tamburini (West Long Branch, N.J./Ocean City) was sixth in the pole vault with a vault of 13' 3 1/2" while Rene also had a sixth place finish in the high jump with a leap of 21' 4 1/2".
The Hawks will continue their quest for the NCAA's over the next few weeks, including a stop at the IC4A Championships.
Final Team Scores:
1) Monmouth 117
2) Sacred Heart 115
3) St. Francis (PA) 99
4) Fairleigh Dickinson 85
5) Robert Morris 71
6) Mount St. Mary's 62
7) Long Island 42
8) Central Connecticut 33
9) Quinnipiac 25
10) Wagner 10
11) St. Francis (NY) 4
