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Volume CXXXIII, Number 15 |
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Bowdoin ekes out four-point win
BEN PEISCH
STAFF WRITER
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| Dan Hall pushes past a Coast Guard runner in the 600-meter. He accidentally ran most of the event in lane two, adding an extra 20 meters to his race but still placed fourth overall. (Courtesy of Eric Sofen) |
The Bowdoin Men's Track Team fought its way through a tough challenge from the Coast Guard Academy, emerging as the victors by only four points. After an afternoon of great competition kept the score nip-and-tuck, the Polar Bears eked out the win thanks to clutch performances by athletes competing in late events.
In the end, the Bears stood proud and relieved with 231 points to the Coast Guard Academy's 227. Bates, who did not bring their entire team to the meet, finished third with 120 points and Gordon College finished with five points total.
A number of individual victories by the Bears at the Valentine's Day meet kept the team in the running for the win. In keeping with tradition, James Wilkins '04 dominated the high jump, souring over the bar at 6'8 3/4" and barely missing the school record of 6'11" on his subsequent leaps.
Michael Vitousek '07 (20'4.25") and Tung Trinh '04 (20"0.25") placed first and second in the long jump, and Joseph Adu '07 (8.09) and Joel Presti '06 (8.38) went one-two in the 55-meter hurdles.
The middle distance and distance corps had a great day. Andrew Combs '06 continued his dominating season by easily winning the 800-meter in a time of 1:55.7, and Patrick Hughes '05 broke away from the field late in the race to win the 3000-meter in a time of 8:56.
While the team had a number of outstanding performances, the day belonged to Owen McKenna '07. McKenna ran two tactically-brilliant races in the 1500-meter run (4:00.99) and the 1000-meter run (2:35.1), winning both with vicious finishing bursts.
When it became clear that the meet was going to come down to the wire, the men responded with courage.
Haliday Douglas '05, who usually runs the shorter sprints, valiantly took the leadoff leg in the 4x400-meter relay, which was running without two of its key components, Phil Webster '04 and Greydon Foil '05. Still, the relay team nearly squeaked out a win, placing second behind Coast Guard by less than a second.
The distance medley team took the track next, with McKenna jumping onto the team after already winning two races. McKenna continued his outstanding day, putting the Bears in the lead for good.
Jordan Harrison '04 ran a blistering 400 leg, and roommate/classmate Steve Franklin kept the men in the lead during his 800 leg. By the time Combs received the baton, victory was all but certain. After the race was over, all the men could do was wait helplessly for the rest of the points to be tallied.
The men would not have won the meet without the fighting spirit that has become commonplace for them this season. In a meet decided by only four points, all of the men had to be at the top of their game. One Bowdoin athlete getting out-leaned by a Coast Guard athlete, a throw or jump just inches short of the mark, or one false start could have determined the outcome of the meet. But instead the scrappy and determined Bears rallied around each other, kept their faith in their preparation, and clawed for every point they could get.
The most important meet of the indoor campaign will take place tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. in Farley Field House. The New Englands have been a meet of many great performances for Bowdoin men, and the Bears are planning to make their mark again this year.
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