David Groff Sets New Colonial Relays Record at 1,500m

Tribe in Second After First Day

04/06/07 11:40PM

WILLIAMSBURG - After the first day of competition at the Colonial Relays, the William and Mary’s men’s team is in second place in the team standings with 68 points. The Scarlet Knights of Rutgers hold the lead with 87 points.

Friday Results

Several very notable performances highlighted the day’s action, led by sophomore David Groff’s (Centreville, Va.) star turn in the 1,500m run. In third for much of the race, he overtook the two runners ahead of him in the final lap to post a new Colonial Relays record in 3:46.98. His time qualifies him for the NCAA Regional as well as the IC4A Championships. Senior Sean Anastasia-Murphy (Gloucester, Mass.) also won a champion’s medal, winning the 3,000m steeplechase in an NCAA-qualifying time of 9:04.23.

Junior Rob Dennis (Little Silver, N.J.) also qualified for the NCAA Regional in the steeplechase, placing fourth in 9:06.08. Junior Anthony Arena (Manassas, Va.) place sixth and qualified for the IC4A Championships in 9:11.56, one spot ahead of sophomore Harry Miller (Portland, Ore.), who punched his ticket to the IC4As in 9:12.33. Spencer Kirk (River Forest, Ill.) placed eighth and qualified for the IC4As in 9:12.79.

Sophomore Ryan Jones (Harrisburg, Pa.) is going to the IC4A Championships in the 800m after taking runner-up honors in 1:51.78. Also placing second was junior Ian Fitzgerald (Glenshaw, Pa.), who was the top collegian in the 5,000m with an IC4A-qualifying time of 14:16.48. Sophomore Colin Leak (Chadd’s Ford, Pa.) was fifth overall in 14:24.49, and senior Jason Schoener (Grand Blanc, Mich.) took seventh in 14:28.92. Freshman Patterson Wilhelm (Lynchburg, Va.) rounded out the top eight in 14:30.60. Those three harriers joined Fitzgerald in qualifying for the IC4A Championships, as did freshman Jeff Perrella (Westfield, N.J.), who was 14th in 14:35.59.

Sophomore Alex Heacock (Lititz, Pa.) took third in the javelin with a personal-best and IC4A-qualifying throw of 196’. The effort moves him past Todd Doughty into fifth-place all-time at the College. Freshman Brandon Oliver (Richmond, Va.) finished seventh in the shot put with a put of 47’ 11.75”. Senior David Hryvniak (Spencerport, N.Y.) scored for the Tribe by placing eighth in the 10,000m run, timing 32:57.51.

The Colonial Relays conclude tomorrow.

Team Standings
1. Rutgers 87
2. William and Mary 68
3. Georgetown 58
4. Iona 42
5. Norfolk State 37
6. Seton Hall 33
T7. St. Francis (Pa.) 30
T7. Michigan State 30
9. Cortland State 22
10. Yale 18
11. Virginia Commonwealth 10
12. Virginia Military 9
13. Holy Cross 8
14. Mount St. Mary’s 6
15. Delaware 5
16. St. Francis (N.Y.) 4
17. Christopher Newport 1