MEMPHIS, TN – It was a strong start to the outdoor season for the Men's Track & Field Team. At their home facility amid blue skies and spring temperatures the Lynx had perhaps their best debut meet in recent history.
Highlighting the field event performances was junior
Andrew Maryott (East Dennis, MA) whose throw of 46'8” (14.22m) placed him fifth overall among competition from Division I, I, and III schools and moved him within two feet of the school record. Maryott notched two other top-ten performances during the day; his discus throw of 138'6” (42.23m) was the tenth-best among a field of thirty-nine competitors and his hammer throw – good for ninth place with a distance of 151'4” (46.14m) – placed only 2'4” away from both his personal and school record.
Also posting strong performances in the field events was sophomore
Alex Lippincott (Brookline, MA) and senior co-captain
Greg Cook (Bellaire, TX). Lippincott's high jump of 6'2.75” (1.90m) placed him sixth amid an extremely competitive field in which the top two finishers jumped over seven feet. In the triple jump, Cook placed ninth with a distance of 41'6.5” (12.66m). Also competing in the javelin, he finished sixth out of twenty-three competitors with an excellent throw of 173'7” (52.91m).
The running events were marked by outstanding showings in the relays. The men's 4x100m consisting of sophomore
Kevin Stechler (Westborough, MA), senior
Cory Dardenne (Kingwood, TX), senior
Josh McMurray (College Grove, TN), and junior
Greg Palm (Merrimack, NH) was the top Division III performance in the race, posting an excellent debut time of 43.49 seconds en route to a sixth place finish. The 4x400m squad had perhaps their best start to the outdoor season, running a 3:24.56 to place fourth overall, and third in their heat. Teammates Dardenne, junior Jon Mervine (Stafford, VA), senior co-captain
Anson Purdy (Wesfield, NJ) and Cook finished ahead of the next fastest Division III relay by over seven seconds. With a team consisting completely of underclassmen, the 4x800m relay of freshman
Tyler Catterton (Memphis, TN), junior
Matt Jacobs (Houston, TX), freshman
Michael Ascuitto (New Orleans, LA), and freshman
Chris Hardy (Collierville, TN) displayed veteran race prowess en route to a third place finish – clocking in with a very solid time of 8:14.58.
Catterton overall had an excellent day as prior to his lead-off relay leg, he competed in the 800m run, placing fifth in a time of 1:57.59. Not only was his time a second off his personal record, but it also was the best Division III time posted in the race. Other notable performances came from Purdy and Mervine in the 400m hurdles. In a very competitive field the teammates placed seventh and eighth in respective times of 56.32 and 56.99 seconds.
It was fantastic start to the outdoor season for the Lynx, and if the day's performances were any indication, the rest of the season looks to be a promising one. The Rhodes team returns to action on Saturday March 27th as they host their second meet of the season at Fargason Field with events getting under way at 9:00am.
