PRINCETON, NJ – A day after Monmouth University's men's track team set a school record in the 4x100 meter relay, the women's squad consisting of Allie Wilson (Wallingford, PA/Strath Haven), Jenna Cupp (Newark Valley, NY/Newark Valley), Kendal Hand (Howell, NJ/Howell), and Tionna Garner (Trenton, NJ/Trenton Catholic Academy) shattered a school record in the 4x800 meter relay, winning the event in 8:42.93. The previous record was set in 2015 by the same exact four women with a time of 8:46.08.
Both the men and women totaled the best finishes in Monmouth history at ECAC/IC4A's. The men placed seventh overall with 36 points in the 140th IC4A's, the longest running meet in the country, while the women finished in eighth with 31 points during the 33rd ECAC Championship. It marked the first time ever that both teams have finished in the top 10 in the same year. The Hawks boasted 14 All-East honorees in 11 different events throughout the meet.
"This is a championship with a ton of history that includes most of the best teams in the East and over 60 schools," said Monmouth head coach Joe Compagni. "Our team competed very well both yesterday and today to earn a great team finish."
Sophomore Corey Murphy (Yaphank, NY/Longwood) won the IC4A men's shot put event with his throw of 58'5.75", beating out 21 athletes. Tevin Kirby-Stewart (Horsham, PA/Hatboro-Horsham) took fourth in the event with a toss of 54'11.5". Both men earned All-East honors for their performances.
In the men's triple jump, senior Joey Marini (Lincoln Park, NJ/Boonton) took third place and added All-East honors with a 49'3.5" leap, besting 21 other athletes. Freshman Darius Howe (Baltimore, MD/Western Tech) placed tenth in the event (47'7").
Freshman Harry Bickmore's (Albany, NY/Guilderland) high jump of 2.03m (6'8") was good for seventh place in the event and All-East accolades. Bickmore won last week's MAAC men's high jump to qualify for ECAC's.
Monmouth's 4x100 meter relay team of Bryan Sosoo (Laurel, MD/Reservoir), Eric Kahana (Freehold, NJ/Freehold), Malcolm Chavis (Landing, NJ/Roxbury), and Ahmier Dupree (Lakewood, NJ/Lakewood [Montclair State]) placed seventh, a day after they broke the school record in the event.
After Andrea Olsen (Estell Manor, NJ/Buena Regional) notched the program's second fastest time in the women's 400 hurdles, the junior placed third in the finals, crossing in 59.69 and acquiring her first individual All-East honor. In the men's 400-meter hurdle finals, senior Geordan Ferguson (Lakehurst, NJ/Manchester Township) took fourth overall with a time of 52.76 seconds which was also good for All-East honors.
Next up for select Monmouth athletes are the NCAA Championships in Jacksonville, FL. Stay tuned to www.monmouthhawks.com for updates of the meet, which will run from May 26 to May 28.
@MonmouthUTFXC
