Four Event Victories Highlight Saturday for Men’s Track

Tribe Finishes Second at VCU Ram Invitational

03/15/08 11:25PM

RICHMOND, VA - William and Mary athletes won four events Saturday at the VCU Ram Invitational, but was unable to hold off VCU’s sprinting onslaught and finished second in the five-team event.

Complete Results

Hometown-hero Brandon Oliver (Richmond, Va.) put the shot a career-best 48’ 5.25” to win the event, and classmate Dan Klatzkin (Gaithersburg, Md.) was second with a mark of 47’ 7.25”. Senior James Picard (Midlothian, Va.) ran 4:00.30 to win the 1,500m run and lead three Tribe athletes in the top four. Freshman Brian Sklodowski (Newark, Del.) was third in 4:04.32, and redshirt-freshman Lewis Woodard (Charlotte, N.C.) took fourth in 4:04.48.

In the 2,000m steeplechase, senior Rob Dennis (Little Silver, N.J.) ran 5:57.80 for the win. Freshman Sean Sewell (Raleigh, N.C.) was fourth in 6:07.47, and classmate Andrew Mearns (Williamsburg, Va.) qualified for the USAT&F Junior National Championships with his fifth-place time of 6:15.99. Sophomore Doug Zimmer (McLean, Va.) held on for the win in the decathlon, scoring 5,855 points. Zimmer capitalized on winning the pole vault with a height of 13’ 1.5”, and also claimed the 1,500m run in 5:08.28.

The Tribe’s freshman sprinters performed very well on the day, posting three times in or near the College’s all-time top-10. In the 400m, David Blitzer (Haworth, N.J.) ran 50.35 for fifth place, and became the 10th-fastest runner in school history. Florian Cords (Williamsburg, Va.) was right behind him in 50.75, standing at 12th all-time at the College. In the 200m dash, Chris McIntosh (Owings Mill, Md.) ran 22.72 seconds for eighth place, and to stand 11th all-time at that distance in school history.

In the discus, senior Tom Mulcahy (Staunton, Va.) opened his final campaign with a strong distance of 143’ 9” to take second. Klatzkin was fourth with a throw of 139’ 9”, and sophomore Alex Ball (Winchester, Va.) took fifth after throwing for 123’. Also placing in the top five in their events, redshirt-freshman Chad Cochran (Centreville, Va.) was fifth in the 110m hurdles with a time of 17.71 seconds, and the team of Blitzer, McIntosh, Cords, and Matt Heidman (Manassas, Va.) was third in the 4x100m relay with a time of 45.13 seconds.

W&M has two weeks off before the next meet, and it will need every day as four meets are scheduled for the weekend of March 28-29. The Alabama Relays kick things off in Tuscaloosa, March 27-28, and the Raleigh Relays (Raleigh, North Carolina), Fred Hardy Invitational (Richmond, Virginia), and Liberty Asics Invitational (Lynchburg, Virginia) are all on tap March 28-29.

Team Standings
1. Virginia Commonwealth 242
2. WILLIAM AND MARY 155
3. Mount St. Mary’s 107
4. Wagner 63
5. Richmond 10