Gojumbos: Home of Men's Cross Country and Track & Field at Tufts University

Track and Field Preview

(12/3/2011 8:47 AM)

Returning all but one scorer from last year's NESCAC Championship meet, the Tufts men's track and field team will look to improve on last spring's fourth-place showing in the conference.

The Jumbos will also seek a return to the top three at the indoor Division III New England Championship, where they placed sixth last winter. Additionally, only three team members competed at the national level last year. That number is sure to rise this season.

The returning indoor national qualifiers, senior co-captain Connor Rose and junior Jeff Marvel, will anchor the mid-distance squad for Tufts. Marvel and Rose broke the school record in the indoor 800 meters at the Open New England Championship last winter with their dueling 1:52's. They went on to represent the Jumbos at the NCAA Championship, where Rose placed 10th and Marvel placed 12th.

Joining Rose and Marvel as leaders of the mid-distance squad will be junior Sam Haney, and sophomores Jamie Norton and Brian McLaughlin. Haney anchored the distance medley relay (DMR) team with a 4:10-1600m split and narrowly missed qualifying provisionally for NCAA's in the mile last winter. Norton ran the 1200 meter leg of the DMR and posted some impressive mile times during the first indoor track season of his life. McLaughlin is coming off a breakout cross country season and is poised to be force for the Jumbos in the mile and 3000 meters.

The distance squad will be lead by junior Matt Rand, the Jumbos' other returning national qualifier. Rand placed third in the 10,000 meters at the NESCAC Championship last spring and went on to represent the Jumbos at the outdoor NCAA Championship, where he placed sixth in the 10k, earning All-American honors. Rand is bringing some solid momentum into his junior track season after finishing 19th overall, earning his 2nd All American honors at the 2011 Cross Country National Championships.

Joining Rand in the distance events will be junior Kyle Marks and sophomores Liam Cassidy and Ben Wallis. Marks placed seventh in the 5000 meters at the NESCAC Championship last spring, while Cassidy placed third. Cassidy went on to win the Division III New England title in the 5k the following week. Wallis qualified provisionally for the NCAA Championship in the steeplechase last spring and notched a top-five finish in the event at the Open New England Championship.

The field events will also be very strong for the Jumbos this season. High jumpers Michael Blair and Alex Orchowski finished 1-2 in the NESCAC Championship last spring. Blair also won the New England and ECAC Championships in the event. Currently, Orchowski is posting big numbers for the Tufts basketball squad leaving Blair to carry the brunt of the load for the indoor season. Junior Brad Nakanishi tops the pole vault crew. Last year, he was the runner-up at the indoor New England and NESCAC Championships. His best vault qualified him provisionally for the outdoor NCAA Championship with his clearance of 15-7.

Junior Gbola Ajayi is poised to be a major contributor in the horizontal jumps. He recorded top-three finishes in the long and triple jumps at the NESCAC Championship last season. Junior Curtis Yancy remains one of the top throwers in the region leading his training group. He placed sixth in the hammer throw and seventh in the shot put at the conference championship in the spring.

In the sprinting events, the Jumbos will be led by sophomores Dan Lange-Vagle and Graham Beutler. Lange-Vagle recorded a top-three finish at the NESCAC Championship in the 100 meters last spring and also earned All-New England honors in the pentathlon during the indoor season. Beutler notched a top 10 finish in the 200 meters at the NESCAC Championship and in the 400 meters at the New England Championship last season.

With nearly all contributors from last year returning, the Jumbos have very high expectations for the 2011-12 campaign. The team will challenge for the top spots in the conference and region, and look to increase the size of the Tufts contingent at the NCAA Championships. Additionally, there are a number of talented and hard working first-years suiting up for the Jumbos. However, only time will tell what their rookie season will hold.