Lions Race To Four Different Events On Busy Weekend

Friday, February 14

Boston, Mass.

10:00 a.m.

Columbia

BU Valentine Invitational

Photo by: Columbia University Athletics/Mike McLaughlin

Lions Race To Four Different Events On Busy Weekend

2/13/2020 11:55:00 AM | Track and Field

Live Stats (Fastrack Invite)Live Stats (DH Invite)Watch (DH Invite [$])Live Stats (DK Invite)Watch (DK Invite [$])

Columbia Track & Field will send student-athletes to four different events on a busy weekend of competition.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M./BOSTON/NEW HAVEN, Conn./STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. – Columbia Track & Field again will have a busy and full weekend of competition with the Lions sending student-athletes to four different competitions across four different states and two different time zones, with student-athletes competing at the Don Kirby Elite Invitational (Feb. 14), the David Hemery Valentine Invite (Feb. 14-15), the Giegengack Invitational (Feb. 15) and the Fastrack National Elite (Feb. 14) as Columbia looks for national qualifying marks and prep work ahead of the upcoming Ivy League Indoor Track and Field Heps.

HOW TO WATCH/FOLLOW
Don Kirby Invite (Feb. 14): Live Stats | Watch (FloTrack [$]) | Twitter (@ColumbiaXCTF)
David Hemery Valentine Invite (Feb. 14-15): Live Stats | Watch (FloTrack [$]) | Twitter (@ColumbiaXCTF)
Fastrack National Elite (Feb. 14): Live Stats | Twitter (@ColumbiaXCTF)
Giegengack Invite (Feb. 15): Twitter (@ColumbiaXCTF)

LIONS ALL OVER THE PLACE: With the goal of setting national championship qualifying marks, while also gaining valuable experience, Columbia will send student-athletes to four different events in four different locations. Columbia will send a large collection of student-athletes to the Fastrack National Elite at the Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex in Staten Island, New York and the 14th Giegengack Invitational in New Haven, Connecticut.

A decent amount of both men and women mid-to-distance runners will head north to Boston, Massachusetts to run on one of the fastest indoor tracks in the country, as they will take part in the David Hemery Valentine Invite, hosted at the Track & Tennis Center. While seniors Daniel Igbokwe and Maryam Hassan, along with sophomore Kali Hatcher, will head to the Don Kirby Elite Invitational, hosted by New Mexico in Albuquerque, New Mexico where they will all compete in the triple jump.

WASSERMAN CRACKS THE TOP 15: During the previous weekend, senior Katie Wasserman clocked a personal record time of 4:40.29 in the One Mile Run at the Camel City Invitational (Feb. 7) to finish sixth in the race. What made the time impressive was that it was, and still sits as, the 15th best time in the country and the second-best time in the Ivy League this season.

ALONZO COASTS: During the Villanova Invitational, on Feb. 1, senior Bianca Alonzo turned out an impressive performance in the 1,000-Meter Run, finishing second in the event, while running a personal record time of 2:48.96. What makes that time stand out, is that was the fastest time run in the Ivy League up to that point in the season, and it now sits at fourth best.

HATCHER JUMPS WITH THE BEST: During the Dr. Sander Invite, Hatcher, on her final jump in the triple jump, leaped to a new personal record mark of 42-6.75/12.97m to take the title in that event by a large margin. What made the mark impressive was the fact that it was, at the time, the 15th best mark set in the country this season, and even several weeks later it still sits tied for the 21st best mark in the nation.

PIHLKAR CHASING A TITLE: At the Dartmouth-Yale-Columbia tri-meet on Jan. 18, junior Jack Pihlkar tossed a PR mark of 61-10.25/18.85m to take first in the weight throw. What made the toss impressive was that at the time, it was the 54th best performance in the country and best performance in the Ivy League.

The mark was surpassed by Michael Coppolino shortly after Pihlkar's toss on Jan. 18, but at the Dr. Sander Invite, Pihlkar and Coppolino faced off with each other, and Pihlkar showed that it is a two-horse race at the top of the league in the weight throw. Pihlkar barley missed his PR mark, throwing a distance of 61-9.50/18.83m, to finish third, but his mark bested Coppollion's fourth-place mark, setting the tone for the remainder of the season as things begin to build towards the Ivy League Indoor Track & Field Heps on Feb. 29 in Ithaca, New York.

COLUMBIA PARTICIPANTS

FASTRACK NATIONAL INVITE (FEB. 14)
Staten Island, New York (Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex)

Women's Track Events:
60-Meter Dash: Lauren Micham (Jr.)
60-Meter Hurdles: Micham
200-Meter Dash: Peyton Jones (So.); Tessa Green (Fr.)
400-Meter Dash: Brianna Hodges (So.); Betty Jackson (Jr.); Carlita Taylor (So.)
800-Meter Run: Alex Rodman (So.); Terri Turner (Jr.); Cassidy Williams (Fr.)
One-Mile Run: Linnaea Kavulich (So.); Rachel Kenny (So.); Emily Rooney (So.); Angela Saidman (Fr.)
3,000-Meter Run: Fiona Danieu (Jr.); Serena Tripodi (Jr.)
Distance Medley Relay (4,000m): Kenny, Rodman, Kavulich, Saidman, Rooney

Men's Track Events:
60-Meter Dash: Moe Abusway (Fr.); James Chung (Fr.); Karibi Hart (So.); Dante Miller (So.); Gio Trejos (Jr.)
60-Meter Hurdles: Abusway (Fr.)
200-Meter Dash: Hart; Troy Martig (Sr.)
400-Meter Dash: Chung; Trejos; Jemal Vaunado II (Jr.)
800-Meter Run: Ian Irish (So.); Vasilis Kopanas (Sr.)
One-Mile Run: Owen Bishop (Jr.); Juan Lasso (Fr.)

14TH GIEGENGACK INVITATIONAL (FEB. 15)
New Haven, Connecticut (Coxe Cage)

Women's Field Events:
High Jump: Julia Jordahl-Henry (Fr.); Madelyn Sessler (Jr.); Anna Jordahl-Henry (Fr.)
Long Jump: Casidy Cunningham (So.); Tiffany Bautista (Fr.)
Triple Jump: Bautista
Shot Put: Cameron Downey (Jr.); Hailey Montgomery (So.)
Weight Throw: Downey; Kayla-Rae Gordon (Fr.); Montgomery

Men's Field Events:
High Jump: Ernest Robertson (So.)
Pole Vault: Ben Poth (Jr.); Logan Rubasch (So.); Tiber Seireeni (So.); Will O'Brien (Fr.)
Shot Put: Noah Johnson (Jr.); Matt Lange (Fr.); Hunter Hasley (Sr.)
Weight Throw: Hasley; Johnson; Jack Pihlkar (Jr.)

DAVID HEMERY VALENTINE INVITATIONAL (FEB. 14-15)
Boston, Massachusetts (Track & Tennis Center)

Women's Track Events:
200-Meter Dash: Rachel Marsh (Fr.)
400-Meter Dash: Alexis Knight (Fr.)
800-Meter Run: Bianca Alonzo (Sr.)
1,000-Meter Run: Emily Digman (Sr.)
One-Mile Run: Katie Wasserman (Sr.)
3,000-Meter Run: Allie Hays (Jr.)
5,000-Meter Run: Samantha Marin (Jr.)

Men's Track Events:
200-Meter Dash: Chris Balthazar (Fr.); Jahi Hernandez (Fr.); Brodie Holmes (So.)
800-Meter Run: Jackson Storey (Jr.); Nixon McKenzie (Fr.); Jacob Caswell (Sr.)
One-Mile Run: Aaron Breene (Jr.)
5,000-Meter Run: Dominic Dyer (Jr.)
4x400-Meter Relay: (A) Hernandez, Balthazar, Holmes, Storey

DON KIRBY ELITE INVITATIONAL (FEB. 14)
Albuquerque, New Mexico (Albuquerque Convention Center)

Women's Field Events:
Triple Jump: Kali Hatcher (So.); Maryam Hassan (Sr.)

Men's Field Events:
Triple Jump: Daniel Igbokwe (Sr.)

FOLLOWING THE LIONS: Stay up to date on all things Columbia Track & Field by following the Lions on Twitter (@ColumbiaXCTF), Instagram (@columbiaxctf) and on Facebook (@ColumbiaAthletics).