Coral Gables, FL - The Harvard track and field teams did well to have warm weather down at Miami University for the Hurricane Invitational on Saturday, where two school records fell in
Aaron Shirley's 400m hurdles and
Kenneth Ikeji's hammer throw.
Harvard Highlights
• Coming off a spectacular indoor season in which he advanced to the NCAA Championship meet, Ikeji made his outdoor debut with yet another school record. As the only thrower in the competition who successfully recorded a score on all six attempts, he threw 69.18m (227') in his fifth attempt to post the furthest mark of the day, winning the Hurricane Invite and setting a new Harvard record.
• Shirley stepped into the first place spot in Harvard history and first place in the nation after the first two weeks of outdoor competition in the 400m hurdles with a time of 50.29. He was a full two seconds faster than anyone else at the Hurricane Invite to claim the gold medal.
• With a clearance of 4.15m,
Anastasia Retsa has won her second outdoor meet of the year in the pole vault after clearing a height just .01m below her current record on her first attempt.
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Stephanie Ratcliffe is also undefeated in the outdoor season so far in the hammer throw with a 65.45m (214' 8") toss to win in Coral Gables.
Cara Salsberry joined her on the podium in third.
• Another thrower made his outdoor debut with a win after the NCAA indoor championships in
Alexander Kolesnikoff. With a 19.02m (62' 5") throw in the shot put, he claimed first place with a throw that currently sits sixth in the nation. He returned later in the day to take second place in the discus throw.
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Sarah Omoregie matched Kolesnikoff on the women's side, throwing 16.80m (55' 1.50") in the shot put to also sit sixth in the nation. She placed second at the meet.
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Estel Valeanu has proved dominant in the discus throw to start the 2023 outdoor season, winning her second meet in a row with a throw of 55.52m (182' 2"), currently ranking 11th in the nation.
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Jaeschel Acheampong ran a personal best in the 100m dash to win the Hurricane Invitational with a time of 10.50 that moves him up to fifth in the Harvard record book.
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Victoria Bossong made her outdoor debut in the 800m run with a meet-winning time of 2:07.43 that sits 12th in the NCAA after two weeks of outdoor competition.
• The Crimson topped the podium in the men's 200m dash, with
Lance Ward winning the race in 20.86 followed by
Gregory Lapit in second in 21.04.
Up Next
Harvard will send athletes to two meets from March 30 to April 1 with the Florida Relays meet spanning three days and the UMass Dartmouth Corsair Classic taking place only on Saturday, April 1.
