Friday, May 5
Bethlehem, Pa.
Lehigh University
vs
Patriot League Championship
Photo by: Don Paul
Scott and Harvey Take Home Gold Medals as Lehigh Finishes 4th at Patriot League Championships
5/6/2023 11:21:00 PM | Men's Track and Field
BETHLEHEM Pa. — The Lehigh men's track and field program boasts two gold medals and a fourth-place finish as the host of the 2023 Patriot League Outdoor Track and Field Championship at the Goodman Track and Field Complex, which wrapped-up Saturday.
"Simply put, we were awesome, exclaimed men's track and field head coach Todd Etters. "We came into the championship knowing that we would be in a battle with Bucknell for fourth place and by the end we were nipping at the heels of Boston. I am really thankful and appreciative of what our men accomplished. This was a breakthrough moment for us and our program that we will capitalize on."
Navy was crowned the Patriot League Champions while collecting 323.2 points while Army West Point finished second with 169.2 points and Boston University third with 109 points. The Mountain Hawks totaled 93.4 points for fourth place and finished ahead of Bucknell who ended the meet in fifth with 67.2 points. Colgate finished in sixth with 30 points while Holy Cross (23) Lafayette (21) and American (20) finished with three points of each other to round out the championship meet.
"A lot of things broke the right way for us this weekend, but we weren't lucky," continued Etters. "We trusted in ourselves and even though track and field is thought of as an individual sport, we showed that at Lehigh it is a team sport. Our men stepped up across all of our events and competed hard for each other."
Jumps
Senior Ian Scott took home a gold medal in the triple jump by reaching a distance of 15.38m to break the school record while sophomore Skyler Mott grabbed a point with his eighth-place finish with a mark of 13.83m.
"We did have some standout performances over the weekend that were really inspiring," added Etters. "Ian Scott won the triple jump and set a new school record. \His mark should get him to the preliminary round of the NCAA Championship. Ian was leading the competition through four jumps and then a Navy competitor leapfrogged him in the 5th round. That only motivated Ian to snatch the lead right back on the very next jump. That shows the type of competitor he is."
Mott then earned a bronze medal in the high jump by clearing a height of 2.01m while Scott and senior Brittann Pierce tied for sixth at a mark of 1.96m.
Mid-Distance/Distance
Sophomore Kevin Harvey was the top finisher in the 5,000m race, capturing the gold medal with a time of 14:22.27.
"It is really hard to surprise me, but I have to admit that Kevin Harvey's performance this weekend did just that, noted Etters. "Our league is so deep in the distance events and that is exemplified in the 5k when 50 runners line up at the starting line to race. Early in the race, Kevin was in 24th place and each and every lap he moved up. At 3k he was in 9th place, at 4k he moved up to 2nd place, but he still had to make up 20 meters on the leader.
"Coming off the last turn there was no doubt he would win. Coming into the weekend, Kevin had the 20th-best seed in the league in the 5k and yet he won. His performance shows just what we are capable of when we believe in ourselves."
In the 3,000m steeplechase, first-year Adam Barbato was able to earn a point by turning in a time of 9:14.00 with senior Tyler French right behind him with a time of 9:14.04 for ninth.
In the 800m final, seniors Kerem Ayhan and Jacob Martinez earned points Ayhan finished third in a time of 1:50.93 for six points while Martinez earned two points with his seventh-place finish.
Sophomore Aidan Lynch scored a couple of points for Lehigh when he finished seventh in the 1,500m race with a time of 3:52.11. First-year Daniel Malatesta finished 12th with a mark of 4:08.45.
Throws
Sophomore Liam Lovering took home the silver medal in the discus with a mark of 52.39m while both first-year Joe Nowakowski and junior Alex Clevenger finished one after another in the shot put. Nowakowski recorded a distance of 15.09m for 11th while Clevenger hit a mark of 15.07m.
"Liam Lovering has been leading the charge for our throwers all year. He finished runner-up in the discus throw and he is also currently lined up to compete at the NCAA preliminary round in Florida at the end of the month. What is great about Liam and the throws group as a whole is the momentum they have built. Coach Taub has assembled what I think is the best all-round group of throwers that Lehigh has ever had and it has been so much fun to see that development," commented Etters.
Decathlon
Sophomore Gideon Coprivnicar recorded 6167 points in the decathlon, which was good enough for fifth place. He finished second in the javelin with a distance of 53.74m, and third in the high jump (1.86m) and the 110m hurdles (16.22 seconds).
Sprints
Sophomore Patrez Thomas earned a bronze medal in the 400m hurdles when ran a time of 53.71 seconds while sophomore Jack Murphy finished eighth with a time of 58.66 seconds.
Senior Amondo Lemmon finished sixth in the 400m dash with a time of 49.26 seconds for three points
The squad of Andrew Roman, Amondo Lemmon, Niko Cruz and John Siani put together a time of 43.52 seconds in the 4x100 for seventh place
Etters added, "Skyler Mott, Kerem Ayhan, and Patrez Thomas all earned third-place finishes in their events. All of them are also in a battle to continue their seasons at the NCAA preliminary round and were bested by national-class athletes in their own right. However, it was great to see each of them raise their level and take some of the best in the country to their limits."
Lehigh had two Mountain Hawks (Kevin Harvey (5,000m), Ian Scott (Triple Jump)) named to the First Team All-Patriot League while Liam Lovering (Discus) earned a spot on the All-League Second Team.
"There were so many great performances this weekend and I could go up and down the roster highlighting them. The podium finishers deserve a lot of attention and recognition. However, we had point scorers in 16 of 22 events. I challenged the team that making our roster for the Patriot League Championship roster carried the expectation of scoring. We had 71% of our roster score points and almost everyone had their best performance of the season," concluded Etters.
The Mountain Hawks' will prepare for the IC4A/ECAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships, which are scheduled for May 12-14 at George Mason.
"Simply put, we were awesome, exclaimed men's track and field head coach Todd Etters. "We came into the championship knowing that we would be in a battle with Bucknell for fourth place and by the end we were nipping at the heels of Boston. I am really thankful and appreciative of what our men accomplished. This was a breakthrough moment for us and our program that we will capitalize on."
Navy was crowned the Patriot League Champions while collecting 323.2 points while Army West Point finished second with 169.2 points and Boston University third with 109 points. The Mountain Hawks totaled 93.4 points for fourth place and finished ahead of Bucknell who ended the meet in fifth with 67.2 points. Colgate finished in sixth with 30 points while Holy Cross (23) Lafayette (21) and American (20) finished with three points of each other to round out the championship meet.
"A lot of things broke the right way for us this weekend, but we weren't lucky," continued Etters. "We trusted in ourselves and even though track and field is thought of as an individual sport, we showed that at Lehigh it is a team sport. Our men stepped up across all of our events and competed hard for each other."
Jumps
Senior Ian Scott took home a gold medal in the triple jump by reaching a distance of 15.38m to break the school record while sophomore Skyler Mott grabbed a point with his eighth-place finish with a mark of 13.83m.
🥇SCOTT WINS GOLD!!🥇
— Lehigh TF & XC (@LehighTFXC) May 6, 2023
Senior Ian Scott is the 2023 @PatriotLeague Champion in the triple jump and broke the school record with a mark of 15.38m! Congrats Ian! #GoLehigh pic.twitter.com/RCynYCiuPi
Home sweet home 😃🏅
— Patriot League on ESPN (@PatriotLeagueTV) May 6, 2023
Ian Scott defends his indoor title with his win in the Men's Triple Jump. @LehighTFXC @LehighSports pic.twitter.com/UvXxkTEhpG
"We did have some standout performances over the weekend that were really inspiring," added Etters. "Ian Scott won the triple jump and set a new school record. \His mark should get him to the preliminary round of the NCAA Championship. Ian was leading the competition through four jumps and then a Navy competitor leapfrogged him in the 5th round. That only motivated Ian to snatch the lead right back on the very next jump. That shows the type of competitor he is."
Mott then earned a bronze medal in the high jump by clearing a height of 2.01m while Scott and senior Brittann Pierce tied for sixth at a mark of 1.96m.
Mid-Distance/Distance
Sophomore Kevin Harvey was the top finisher in the 5,000m race, capturing the gold medal with a time of 14:22.27.
🥇HARVEY IS GOLDEN!🥇
— Lehigh TF & XC (@LehighTFXC) May 6, 2023
Sophomore Kevin Harvey is your @PatriotLeague Champion in the 5k with a time 14:22.27! Congrats, Kevin! pic.twitter.com/P2leKgnnBs
"It is really hard to surprise me, but I have to admit that Kevin Harvey's performance this weekend did just that, noted Etters. "Our league is so deep in the distance events and that is exemplified in the 5k when 50 runners line up at the starting line to race. Early in the race, Kevin was in 24th place and each and every lap he moved up. At 3k he was in 9th place, at 4k he moved up to 2nd place, but he still had to make up 20 meters on the leader.
"Coming off the last turn there was no doubt he would win. Coming into the weekend, Kevin had the 20th-best seed in the league in the 5k and yet he won. His performance shows just what we are capable of when we believe in ourselves."
In the 3,000m steeplechase, first-year Adam Barbato was able to earn a point by turning in a time of 9:14.00 with senior Tyler French right behind him with a time of 9:14.04 for ninth.
In the 800m final, seniors Kerem Ayhan and Jacob Martinez earned points Ayhan finished third in a time of 1:50.93 for six points while Martinez earned two points with his seventh-place finish.
Sophomore Aidan Lynch scored a couple of points for Lehigh when he finished seventh in the 1,500m race with a time of 3:52.11. First-year Daniel Malatesta finished 12th with a mark of 4:08.45.
Throws
Sophomore Liam Lovering took home the silver medal in the discus with a mark of 52.39m while both first-year Joe Nowakowski and junior Alex Clevenger finished one after another in the shot put. Nowakowski recorded a distance of 15.09m for 11th while Clevenger hit a mark of 15.07m.
"Liam Lovering has been leading the charge for our throwers all year. He finished runner-up in the discus throw and he is also currently lined up to compete at the NCAA preliminary round in Florida at the end of the month. What is great about Liam and the throws group as a whole is the momentum they have built. Coach Taub has assembled what I think is the best all-round group of throwers that Lehigh has ever had and it has been so much fun to see that development," commented Etters.
Decathlon
Sophomore Gideon Coprivnicar recorded 6167 points in the decathlon, which was good enough for fifth place. He finished second in the javelin with a distance of 53.74m, and third in the high jump (1.86m) and the 110m hurdles (16.22 seconds).
Sprints
Sophomore Patrez Thomas earned a bronze medal in the 400m hurdles when ran a time of 53.71 seconds while sophomore Jack Murphy finished eighth with a time of 58.66 seconds.
Senior Amondo Lemmon finished sixth in the 400m dash with a time of 49.26 seconds for three points
The squad of Andrew Roman, Amondo Lemmon, Niko Cruz and John Siani put together a time of 43.52 seconds in the 4x100 for seventh place
Etters added, "Skyler Mott, Kerem Ayhan, and Patrez Thomas all earned third-place finishes in their events. All of them are also in a battle to continue their seasons at the NCAA preliminary round and were bested by national-class athletes in their own right. However, it was great to see each of them raise their level and take some of the best in the country to their limits."
Lehigh had two Mountain Hawks (Kevin Harvey (5,000m), Ian Scott (Triple Jump)) named to the First Team All-Patriot League while Liam Lovering (Discus) earned a spot on the All-League Second Team.
"There were so many great performances this weekend and I could go up and down the roster highlighting them. The podium finishers deserve a lot of attention and recognition. However, we had point scorers in 16 of 22 events. I challenged the team that making our roster for the Patriot League Championship roster carried the expectation of scoring. We had 71% of our roster score points and almost everyone had their best performance of the season," concluded Etters.
The Mountain Hawks' will prepare for the IC4A/ECAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships, which are scheduled for May 12-14 at George Mason.
Players Mentioned
Sprints
/ Men's Track and Field
Distance
/ Men's Track and Field
Throws
/ Men's Track and Field
Multis
/ Men's Track and Field
Distance
/ Men's Track and Field
Distance
/ Men's Track and Field
Sprints
/ Men's Track and Field
Throws
/ Men's Track and Field
Distance
/ Men's Track and Field
Distance
/ Men's Track and Field
Jumps
/ Men's Track and Field
Multis
/ Men's Track and Field
High Jump
/ Men's Track and Field
Jumps
/ Men's Track and Field
Multis
/ Men's Track and Field
Hurdles/Sprints
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