Junior All-American Corey Thomas provisionally qualified for the NCAA Championships in both the high jump and hurdles in his first meet of the season on Saturday. (PHOTO BY Richard Orr) |
All-Americans Thomas and Hanlon double-winners to lead Skyhawks in first meet following semester break
DURHAM, N.H. (January 22, 2012) – Stonehill College, ranked 22nd in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches' Association (USTFCCCA) Division II men's preseason poll, returned to action after over a month off and posted a second place finish at the University of New Hampshire Quad Meet at Paul Sweet Oval on Saturday.
Stonehill, who won its last meet hosted by Brandeis University on December 10, took second on Saturday with 170 points to finish behind just host New Hampshire's 192 points. The College of the Holy Cross (126 points) placed third, while Worcester State University (103) was fourth.
Junior All-American Corey Thomas (Brookline, Mass./BC High) made his season debut for Stonehill and provisionally qualified in both events in which he has earned indoor All-America honors over his career. The reigning NCAA Division II Indoor High Jump National Champion won that event with his PQ height of 6-feet, 10.75-inches, marking the seventh highest jump in Division II this season. Thomas didn't miss on any of his first four heights, including the winning jump, before missing on his three tries at an automatic qualifying height of 2.17-meters.
Freshman Nicholas Staley (Medway, Mass./BC High), who provisionally qualified for the NCAA Championships earlier this winter, placed second to Thomas on Saturday with his height of 6-8.75.
Thomas also provisionally qualified in the hurdles as he won the 55-meter hurdles event on Saturday with his time of 7.58-seconds in the final after qualifying first in 7.60-seconds. Sophomore Xavier Harris-Dixon (New Bedford, Mass./New Bedford) finished third in the final in 7.81-seconds after also qualifying third overall with his heat winning time of 7.96.
Stonehill also took the top two spots in the pole vault with junior Luke Byrnes (Glen Head, N.Y./Chaminade) and sophomore Ryan Perkins (Shrewsbury, Mass./St. John's of Shrewsbury) both clearing 13-feet, 9.25-inches. Byrnes won the event by reaching the height in fewer attempts than Perkins, who was second.
Junior All-American Sean Hanlon (Georgetown, Mass./St. John's Prep) and classmate Samuel Spencer (Seekonk, Mass./Seekonk) took the top two spots in the 1000-meter run for Stonehill. Hanlon won the event with his time of 2:32.20, while Spencer was second in 2:33.93.
Junior All-American Sean Hanlon posted wins in the 1000-meters as well as 4x800 relay. (PHOTO BY Richard Orr) |
Hanlon (anchor) and Spencer also ran the final two legs for Stonehill's 4x800-meter relay team that placed first in 8:06.15. Sophomore Justin Blaszczyk (Saint James, N.Y./Smithtown) ran the opening leg, followed by sophomore Christopher Dooley (Weymouth, Mass./Weymouth) in the winning performance.
Blaszczyk also placed second in the 800-meter run with his time of 2:00.31, while Dooley finished fourth in 2:02.50.
Stonehill's 4x800 "B" team finished third in 8:10.57, with junior Timothy Johnson (Thomaston, Conn./Thomaston), sophomores Scott Waller (Andover, Mass./Andover) and Paul Cina (Pembroke, Mass./Pembroke) and senior Stephen Polito (Worcester, Mass./Doherty Memorial) running legs for the Skyhawks.
Johnson also led a pack of seven Stonehill runners in the mile with his second place finish in 4:21.54. Polito was fourth in 4:21.87 as Stonehill placed three in the top seven and five in the top ten. Waller placed seventh in the field of 18 in 4:28.41, while classmate Trent Fontanella (Pelham, N.H./Bishop Guertin) was ninth in 4:28.96 and freshman Bryan Wilcox (Plantsville, Conn./Southington) tenth in 4:35.36.
Stonehill's 4x400-meter relay team placed third with a time of 3:36.35. Running for the Skyhawks was junior Daniel Padilla (Bronx, N.Y./Mount Saint Michael Academy), senior John Driscoll (Revere, Mass./Revere), sophomore Herby Saintil (Roslindale, Mass./BC High) and freshman Nicholas Capezzuto (North Reading, Mass./North Reading).
Other Stonehill highlights include:
Freshman Teague Grubel (Phoenix, Ariz./Shadow Mountain) took third in the 55-meter dash in 6.68-seconds after qualifying third with his heat winning time of 6.72-seconds in the preliminary rounds. Sophomore Michael Harris (Danvers, Mass./Danvers) also reached the final, placing sixth in 6.82-seconds after qualifying sixth in 6.79.
Junior Luke Byrnes won the pole vault for the Skyhawks. (PHOTO BY Richard Orr) |
Driscoll placed fourth in the 200-meter dash in 24.09-seconds, while Harris was seventh in 24.39-seconds and Harris-Dixon 11th in the field of 22 sprinters with a time of 25.01.
Capezzuto finished fourth in the 500-meter run in 1:09.95, while sophomore Shawn Cronin (Peabody, Mass./Peabody Memorial) placed sixth in 1:10.37.
Freshman Robert Smith (Woburn, Mass./Woburn Memorial) took fifth in the long jump with his distance of 20-feet, 5.75-inches. Sophomore George Georgaklis (Westwood, Mass./Westwood) was sixth with a leap of 20-3.50, while Saintil took eighth at 19-11.00.
Saintil led that trio in the triple jump with a distance of 42-feet, 2.75-inches to place fourth overall. Smith was sixth with a leap of 41-10.50, while Georgaklis was seventh at 41-1.75.
Padilla finished fifth in the 400-meter run in 54.66-seconds.
Freshman Ian Parsons (Nashua, N.H./Nashua South) placed sixth in the shot put with a throw of 44-feet, 0.50-inches. Classmate Daniel Cormier (Methuen, Mass./Methuen) was eighth at 40-4.25.
Senior Daniel Kincade (Brookfield, Conn./Brookfield) and sophomore Thomas Yates (Baldwin, Maine/Cheverus) placed sixth and seventh, respectively, in the weight throw. Kincade took sixth with a distance of 47-feet, 2.50-inches, while Yates was seventh in 45-5.25.
Freshman Michael Gendron (Lowell, Mass./Lowell) led five Skyhawks in the 3000-meter run with his time of 9:03.31 to take seventh overall.
Stonehill is back in action on Friday night for the New Balance Boston Collegiate Indoor Games, hosted by the Reggie Lewis Track & Athletic Center, starting at 4:30 p.m.
