WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. - The Monmouth University men's outdoor track and field team won their eleventh MU Season Opener in the last twelve years on Saturday afternoon. The event was scored as multiple dual meets, and the MU squad went 11-0 on the day. The Hawks' were led by Craig Segal (Holmdel, N.J./Holmdel) who won the first men's event of the day, the 10,000 meter run in a time of 31:34.53.
Monmouth finished first among the 12 Division I teams, beating Rutgers, FDU, Fordham, Hofstra, Iona, NJIT, Temple, St. Joseph's, St. Peter's, Rider and St. Francis (N.Y.) in the dual meet scored event.
"We are happy that we continued the tradition of winning at our home opener," said head coach Joe Compagni. "We had excellent performances at many events, it was a total team effort."
The MU shot-putters carried the day as four Hawks placed in the top seven in the event, led by Nick Williams (Adamstown, Md./Urbana), who finished in second with toss of 16.18 meters. Kyle Hirschklau (Morristown, N.J./Morristown) took fourth with a throw of 15.30 meters, while teammates Larry Lundy (Friendsville, Pa/Montrose Area) and Ed Skowronski (Hazlet, N.J./Raritan) followed in sixth and seventh place, respectively. Williams qualified for the IC4A Championships in both the shot put and the discus.
David Gaines (Freehold, N.J./Colts Neck) was narrowly edged out by FDU's Nick Reid in the 800 meter race, as Gaines' time of 1:54.30 was .01 seconds behind Reid's 1:54.29. William Doherty (Madison, N.J./Madison) took seventh in the event with a time of 1:58:12. Michael Buccheri (Hazlet, N.J./Raritan) claimed fifth in the high jump, as the freshman cleared 1.87 meters, while teammate Matt Losey (Penn Yan, N.Y./Marcus Whitman) took third clearing 1.93. Senior Martin Suarez III (Burlington, N.J./Holy Cross) also took a second place finish for the MU men in the 3,000 meter Steeplechase race with a time of 9:32.90.
Derrik Keich (Tamaqua, Pa./Tamaqua Area) took fourth in the 400 meter race in a time of 56.04, while Tim Raywood (Trenton, N.J./Nottingham) and Matt Mizerek (Morris Plains, N.J./Parsippany Hills) took fifth and sixth in the men's javelin with tosses of 55.02 meters and 54.34 meters, respectively. Darrin Chandler (Hackensack, N.J./Paramus Catholic) claimed a sixth place finish in the 400 meter dash with a time of 50.25. Chris Taiwo (Budd Lake, N.J./Mount Olive) rounded out the individual scoring with a seventh place finish triple jump with a leap of 12.94 meters.
The Hawks' men's 4x400 meter relay team, consisting of Chandler, Keich, Adam Leibensperger (Zionsville, Pa./Emmaus) and Kevin Gilroy (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y./Comsewogue), took seventh in a time of 3:29:86, while the 4x100 meter relay team, consisting of Chris Santorelli (Oceanport, N.J./Shore Regional), Josh Burnett (Wenonah, N.J./Deptford Township), Alex Bowers (Bayville, N.J./Central Regional) and Marcus Lewis (Nanuet, N.Y./Nanuet) took eighth in a time of 43.71.
