Berman wins 1000m title as Lehigh men finish fourth at Patriot League Championships

Saturday, February 16

Annapolis, Md.

Lehigh University

Patriot league Indoor Championship

Berman wins 1000m title as Lehigh men finish fourth at Patriot League Championships

2/17/2019 8:02:00 PM | Men's Track and Field

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ANNAPOLIS, Md. — The Lehigh men's track and field team finished in fourth place overall at the 2019 Patriot League Indoor Championships, which wrapped-up Sunday at Navy's Wesley Brown Field House. The Mountain Hawks scored a total of 67 team points over the two-day event. Five Mountain Hawks earned podium finishes on day two, led by senior Kyle Berman's title in the 1000m.

The Mountain Hawks finished the championship meet with one champion and seven podium finishes.

Lehigh earned the top two spots on the podium in the 1000m as Berman and sophomore Sean Brown grabbed the top two spots. Berman posted a time of 2:26.43, and Brown finished just behind him in second with a time of 2:27.69.

"What a huge one-two punch right when we needed it at that time of the meet," coach Matt Utesch said. "They both ran it really differently. Berman took it out, led it from wire to wire, and Brown came back and raced into second. He had a great kick at the end and had a phenomenal day. Brown's young, too, so we're excited about his future."

Senior high jumper Ryan Givens earned a second place finish in the event, jumping 1.99m (6' 6.25"). Givens finished only behind Army's Jeff Giannettino, who jumped a 2.09m (6' 10.25").

"Ryan's been struggling with injury all year long, but we knew that he was a contender," Utesch said. "I think he surprised a lot of people but he didn't surprise me and he didn't surprise himself either. He always finds a way to get onto the podium."

Freshman Vincent Polignano earned a team point with an eighth place finish in the high jump.

Junior Kyle Sult finished third in the heptathlon with a final score of 4889 points. Sult also competed in the 60m hurdles, posting a time of 8:54 and scoring team points with an eighth place finish.

"What a lot of people don't know is that Kyle pulled his hamstring in the pole vault," Utesch said. "He was taped ankle to hip running the 1000m. He knew he had to hold guys off and he did it. Running is not his best event and he still went out, injured, and did it."

Freshman Nicholas Crociata finished third in the 800m, running in 1:52.49, which is a personal record. Crociata ran in the second heat of the race. This is an impressive feat because the third heat was the seeded heat, which means that Crociata had to win his heat and set a fast time for the seeded section to beat.

"Crociata is just great for our culture," Utesch said. "He's a super aggressive runner, and I really enjoyed watching him run today."

Senior Kyle Kirk also scored in the 800, finishing eighth with a time of 1:54.13

In the 500m, junior Joe Espinal placed sixth, running the race in a time of 1:04.85.

"Espinal got pushed around a bit, but he stayed tough and finished with grace, so we're proud of him."

The distance medley team came in fifth place, as runners junior Matthew Kravitz, Espinal, fKirk and freshman Kyle Burke finished the relay in 10:14.63.

"That was a solid race for those guys," Utesch said. "Kyle Burke anchored it, and he ran a really smart, having a big, strong finish.

Junior Jeffrey Kirschenbaum scored in the 3000m, claiming eighth place in 8:27.01.

"I'm proud of our teams, both the men and the women," Utesch continued. "They really competed well. There was a lot of ebbs and flows of energy and they really stayed focused and kept with it. I don't think the score really showed how exciting the meet was. The top half (of the league) is very strong, so if you're a Patriot League Champion, if you're on the podium, you're very special and we had quite a few of those kids. I'm really proud of our team and how they represented Lehigh."

Utesch also had high praises for the Mountain Hawk coaching staff. Todd Etters coached the 1000m, which earned Lehigh the most points out of any event and on the women's side, Carl Bruno earned multiple school records. Amanda Youngblood earned her first Patriot League Championship as a coach and Debbie Utesch earned a facility, Patriot League and Lehigh record.

"The staff did a great job preparing our team," Utesch said.

Army won the meet with an overall team score of 260 points. Navy placed second, earning 243.5 points, followed by Bucknell with 78.5.

Lehigh will now shift focus to the outdoor season, which begins March 23.