Rutgers outdoor track & field finds success in March meets
The weather is getting warmer and the Rutgers track and field program is off to a hot start. This week marks the halfway point in the Scarlet Knights' 2024 outdoor season, participating in seven meets so far on the path to competing in the Big Ten Championships in May.
The Daily Targum's first article on the outdoor season recaps the four March meets.
Black and Gold Invitational (March 15-16)
Rutgers kicked off its outdoor campaign by sending the throwers down to Orlando, Florida, to compete in an event hosted by the University of Central Florida.
The UCF Soccer and Track Complex witnessed two gold medals from the Knights and another top-three finish, an exceptional result for such a small group.
Rutgers earned two wins in the men's javelin and women's shot put. Senior javelin thrower Steve Coponi won with a throw of 70.02 meters (229' 9"), while senior thrower and jumper Alicia Campbell finished first in the shot put with a distance of 15.40 meters (50' 6.25"). Campbell also placed fourth in the hammer throw event, recording a throw of 57.11 meters (187' 4").
The sole third-place finish came from sophomore thrower Olivia Norris. Norris recorded a personal best throw of 46.60 meters (152' 10") in the javelin event to claim the bronze for the Knights and cap off a successful first meet.
Knights Invite (March 22-23)
Just one week later, Rutgers was back in the Sunshine State for another event hosted by UCF. This time, the Knights sent jumpers and the majority of the runners down to Orlando and returned with four first-place finishes and eight combined second and third-place finishes.
Topping the list was freshman pole vaulter Brian O'Sullivan, who won the men's pole vault and set the school record with a height of 5.28 meters (17' 3.75"). O'Sullivan placed one spot higher than his brother, sophomore pole vaulter Kevin O'Sullivan, who finished second in the pole vault with a height of 5.18 meters (17' 0").
Graduate student sprinter Jameson Woodell was the other winner on the men's side, taking home the gold in the 400-meter hurdles. Woodell finished with a time of 51.14 seconds, with graduate student middle distance runner Micah Wood coming just behind him in second with a time of 51.42 seconds.
For the women, the usual suspects of sophomore jumper Celine-Jada Brown and senior sprinter Sydney Hawkins were the first-place finishers. Brown finished first in the long jump with a distance of 6.41 meters (21' 0.5"), while Hawkins placed first in the 100-meter with a time of 11.46 seconds and contributed to a second-place finish in the 4x100-meter relay.
Penn Challenge (March 23)
While most of the running room was down south for the weekend, Rutgers sent its distance runners over to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to compete in several events for the Penn Challenge.
The Knights competed in the 800-meter, 1500-meter and 3000-meter events, but failed to place in the top five in any of them.
In the 800-meter, freshman distance runners Johnathan Scalia and Jenai Berry placed sixth and seventh, respectively. In the 3000-meter, freshman distance runner Lorena David and junior distance runner Casey Walter placed sixth and ninth, respectively.
Raleigh Relays (March 28-30)
Much like the week prior, Rutgers sent out distance runners to the Raleigh Relays, which was hosted by NC State and took place at the Paul Derr Track Facility in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Unfortunately for the Knights, this meet was similar to the Penn Challenge in more ways than one, with Rutgers failing to place in the top five in any of the events it participated in.
One bright spot was a key performance from junior distance runner Alex Carlson. Carlson set the school record in women's 1500-meter, coming in ninth with a time of 4 minutes and 16.31 seconds. Carlson is currently in the transfer portal but is still competing for the Knights in the outdoor season.
Stay tuned for a recap of Rutgers' April meets.
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