Contact: Terry Small, NJAC Commissioner
(856) 582-3679 or (609) 221-1342
New York, N.Y. – Ramapo College became the first New Jersey Athletic Conference women's team to beat The College of New Jersey and the TCNJ men won their 15th consecutive NJAC title at the Men's and Women's Indoor Track and Field Championships here Friday at the New Balance 168th Street Armory.
Two new teams – Farmingdale State and St. Joseph's-Long Island – competed in the NJAC meet for the first time and Farmingdale junior Edward Brown IV (Bay Shore, NY/Bay Shore) set a conference record and threw an ECAC qualifier with a weight throw of 18.09. The old mark was 16.92 by TCNJ's Jeff Schwerdtman in 2003.
Junior Kathleen Clermont (Uniondale, N.Y.) placed 2nd in the 200 Meters with a time of 26.02, moving into #2 on the All-Time list. She also finished 5th in the 60 Meters. Junior Victoria Mandat (West Babylon, N.Y.) placed 2nd in the 60 Hurdles in a time of 9.33. Junior Joanna Pavone (West Islip, N.Y.) tied her school record in the Pole Vault, clearing a height of 9' 6.25", taking 6th place in the event, while freshman Megan Cabasino (Long Beach, N.Y.) moved to 3rd All-Time at a height of 7' 6.5".
The men's throwers swept the Weight Throw, taking the Top 3 spots, Brown took 1st with his meet record, followed by junior Mike Jang (Lynbrook, N.Y.) in 2nd and freshman Ieshawn Johnson (Queens, N.Y.) in 3rd. Freshman Andrew Bylicki (Deer Park, N.Y.) moved into 9th All-Time with a throw of 34' 11". Jang also took 4th in the Shot Put with a toss of 13.32m, while Johnson took 6th and Brown took 9th.
Other highlights for the men's team included the first-ever ECAC qualifying Distance Medley Relay of senior Russell Darress (Lynbrook, N.Y.), sophomore Daquan Grant (Copiague, N.Y.), freshman William Frederic (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and senior Sean Tiernan (Staten Island, N.Y.). The foursome finished in 10:36.32 good for 2nd place at the meet, moving them into 5th place on the All-Time list.
Frederic also finished 8th in the 800 Meters at 2:01.18. Tiernan finished 8th in the 3000 Meters at 9:12.17. Sophomore Alix Lamarre (North Bellmore, N.Y.) took 4th place in both the Long Jump and Triple Jump. Junior Jelani Bledman (Amityville, N.Y.) took 4th place in the 60 Hurdles 9.04, while freshman Jonathan Gortman (Dix Hills, N.Y.) placed 5th at 9.12 (Gortman ran 8.96 in the preliminaries).
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Other NJAC highlights...
Ramapo's women collected 198 points to end TCNJ's 14-year winning streak in the NJAC championships. The Lions, who had won every NJAC indoor title since the first one in 1998, finished second with 188.5.
The TCNJ men, meanwhile, continued their dominance in the conference, stretching their NJAC streak to 15 straight indoor titles. They scored 218.5 points to continue their mark of never having lost a conference indoor championship meet.
Ramapo finished second with 141.5 points in the men's meet, followed by Rowan (130), Farmingdale State (70.5), Montclair State (48.5), Richard Stockton (48), Rutgers-Camden (17), Rutgers-Newark (13) and St. Joseph's-Long Island (4).
Rowan University (119.5) finished third in the women's meet, followed by Montclair State (88), Richard Stockton (41), Farmingdale State (22), Rutgers-Camden (10), St. Joseph's-Long Island (6) and Rutgers-Newark (1).
The Ramapo women were sparked by junior Anita Rogers (Wyckoff, NJ/Ramapo), who was a three-time winner, capturing the long jump and triple jumps with NJAC records and running on the Roadrunners' winning 4x200 team.
Rogers set a conference record of 5.68 meters in winning the long jump competition. Her mark, which passed the previous mark of 5.64 by Montclair State's Hashan Johnson in 2005, also was an ECAC qualifier and tied her for the seventh-best mark in Division III this season.
Rogers also set a conference record of 12.16 while winning her second straight NJAC title in the triple jump and posting the second-best jump in the country this season. Her jump, which also was an ECAC qualifier, passed the old NJAC mark of 11.76 set by New Jersey City's Andrea Herbert in 2004.
Ramapo also won the 4x200 in an ECAC-qualifying time of 1:43.80 with a team of Rogers, sophomore Chelsea Clark (Pennsauken, NJ/Camden Catholic), freshman Jasmine Hammonds (Elmwood Park, NJ/Elmwood Park) and senior Alexandra Jacob (Ridgefield Park, NJ/Ridgefield Park).
Another junior on the Roadrunners, Michelle Favre (Saddle Brook, NJ/Saddle Brook) posted the second-best Division III pole vault in the country this season (4.01 meters) while winning the NJAC title and notching an ECAC qualifier.
For the first time, the NJAC meet featured races in the 60-meter dash and the 60-meter hurdles, producing two new conference records on both the men's and the women's side. Ramapo sophomore Jaivon Palmer (Englewood, NJ/Dwight Morrow) won the men's 60-meter hurdles in a time of 8.48 after posting a new NJAC mark with a 8.39 clocking in the preliminaries. The same scenario held true in the women's 60-meter hurdles as Montclair State junior Ashadaya Patterson (Trenton, NJ/Northern Burlington) set the conference mark with a 9.21 time in the preliminaries and went on to win the finals in 9.28.
In the 60-meter dash, Ramapo junior Ackeme Brown (Englewood, NJ/Dwight Morrow) turned in a 60-meter dash time of 6.89 to win the event and tie for the fifth-fastest Division III time in the country this season. On the women's side, Ramapo sophomore Chelsea Clark (Pennsauken, NJ/Camden Catholic) won the event with a 7.98 clocking in the finals, while Rowan freshman Shantel Beckford (Piscataway, NJ/Piscataway) set the NJAC record with a preliminary time of 7.97.
The Rowan women also established a NJAC record in winning the 4x800 in a time of 9:26.87. The old mark of 9:39.43 was set by The College of New Jersey in 2011. Members of Rowan's team included junior Christina Huynh (Lake Hiawatha, NJ/Parsippany), freshman Ashlee Hitchner (Mullica Hill, NJ/Delsea Regional), senior Jena Peacock (Williamstown, NJ/Our Lady of Mercy Academy) and sophomore Vanessa Wright (Haddonfield, NJ/Haddonfield Memorial).
TCNJ freshman Jillian Manzo (West Babylon, NY/North Babylon) won the 5,000-meter run with an ECAC-qualifying time of 18:42.29. Another Lions freshman, Katelyn Ary (Closter, NJ/NV Demerst), captured the 800-meter run with an ECAC-qualifying time of 2:18.35.
TCNJ also saw junior Cathy Goncalves (Clark, NJ/AI Johnson) win the 3,000-meter run with an ECAC-qualifying time of 10:16.41 and junior Mary Chismar (Middlesex, NJ/Middlesex) capture the shot put with an ECAC qualifier of 11.68 meters.
The Lions also won the 4x400 with an ECAC qualifier of 3:58.64. The team included freshman Katie Johnston (Oakland, NJ/Indian Hills), sophomore Emily Kulcyk (Marlton, NJ/Cherokee), freshman Michelle Cascio (Washington, NJ/Westwood) and freshman anchor Ary.
Ramapo sophomore Taylor Furman (Rockaway, NJ/Morris Knolls) won the weight throw with an ECAC qualifier of 14.40 meters.
Rowan senior Jena Peacock (Williamstown, NJ/Our Lady of Mercy Academy) captured the NJAC crown in the mile with an ECAC-qualifying time of 5:06.27.
Rowan won the women's distance medley with an ECAC qualifier of 12:35.78. The Profs' team consisted of freshman Brianna Streater (Williamstown, NJ/Williamstown), sophomore Samantha Stapleton (Williamstown, NJ/Williamstown), junior Christina Huynh (Lake Hiawatha, NJ/Paarsippany) and sophomore Vanessa Wright (Haddonfield, NJ/Haddonfield Memorial).
The Profs' sophomore Magan Kustera (West Deptford, NJ/West Deptford) won the high jump and qualified for the ECAC meet with a leap of 1.58 meters.
Montclair State junior Heather Gearity (Rutherford, NJ/Rutherford) repeated as the NJAC champion in the 400-meter dash in a time of 57.39, an ECAC qualifier that tied for the 11th-fastest NCAA Division III time in the nation this year.
The Red Hawks' freshman Imani Jones (Roselle, NJ/Abraham Clark) captured the 200-meter dash with an ECAC-qualifying time of 25.94.
On the men's side, TCNJ swept the top three spots in the men's 5,000-meter race, led by junior Mark Sidebottom (Montville, NJ/Montville) in a time of 15:42.29.
TCNJ sophomore Dominic Tasco (Bridgewater, NJ/Bridgewater-Raritan) won the men's 800-meter race for the second straight season, posting a time of 1:54.29. Not only did he post an ECAC qualifier, but he ran the 15th-fastest NCAA Division III time in the nation.
The Lions also had a repeat winner in the 200-meter dash, as senior Chris Medina (Lakewood, NJ/Monsignor Donovan) won his second straight NJAC title in a time of 22.13.
The Lions' junior Steve D'Aiutolo (Cinnaminson, NJ/Cinnaminson) tied for the 12th-fastest Division III mark in the nation while winning the triple jump with an ECAC-qualifying mark of 14.32 meters.
TCNJ senior Shaun McGeever (Lincroft, NJ/Middletown South) won the mile with an ECAC qualifier of 4:14.51. His mark barely missed the conference record of 4:14.49 set by the Lions' Dennie Waite last season.
Lions freshman James O'Connor (Marmora, NJ/Ocean City) captured the high jump with an ECAC qualifier of 1.98 meters.
The Lions also won the pole vault as junior Julio Alorro (Cresskill, NJ/Cresskill) had an ECAC qualifier of 4.75 meters.
The Lions won the 4x200 with an ECAC-qualifying time of 1:29.75 behind a team of senior Rob Jiggetts (Robbinsville, NJ/Robbinsville), sophomore Kevin Mulcahey (East Brunswick, NJ/East Brunswick), junior Kyle Magliaro (Hillsborough, NJ/Hillsborough) and sophomore anchor Michael Spekhardt (Sparta, NJ/Sparta). TCNJ also captured the 4x800 with an ECAC qualifier of 8:02.88, running junior Michael Berti (Brick, NJ/Brick Memorial), sophomore James Seyffart (South Plainfield, NJ/South Plainfield), McGeever and anchor Tasco.
Ramapo senior Isaaic Patterson (Paterson, NJ/Eastside) posted an ECAC qualifying mark of 6.70 en route to winning the long jump.
Rowan qualified for the ECAC meet with a time of 10:33.09 while winning the men's distance medley behind a team of sophomore Ethan Wolmark (Medford, NJ/Shawnee), junior Josh McGriff (Flemington, NJ/Hunterdon Central Regional), freshman Dave Quimby (Mt. Laurel, NJ/Lenape) and senior Stephen Hoffman (Ocean City, NJ/Ocean City).
Rowan junior Demetrius Rooks (Galloway, NJ/Absegami) won the 400-meter dash in a time of 48.92, posting an ECAC qualifier and the fourth-fastest Division III time in the nation this season. His senior teammate, Eric DuBois (Pittsgrove, NJ/A.P. Schalick) captured the men's 3,000-meter run in an ECAC-qualifying time of 8:40.08.
Rooks also anchored the Profs' winning 4x400 team, which posted an ECAC qualifier and the second-fastest NCAA Division III time in the country at 3:18.55. The first three legs of the team featured senior Jayce Maxwell (Toms River, NJ/Monsignor Donovan), junior Taylor Purdue (Highland Lakes, NJ/Vernon Township) and sophomore Ali Ejaz (Glassboro, NJ/Glassboro).
Montclair State senior John Tancer (Montville, NJ/Montville) won the shot put with an ECAC qualifier of 15.45 meters.
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