CHICAGO, Ill. - On the first day of the University Athletic Assocation (UAA) Outdoor Track & Field Championships, the Judges had numerous personal bests and several runners qualify for final races tomorrow. The majority of the scoring and relay events will be held tomorrow.
On the men's side, two Judges qualified for the final in the 400-meter dash. Junior Mohamed Sidique (Harlem, N.Y./St. Raymond H.S. for Boys) took seventh in the event with a time of 51.86 seconds. Rookie Nick Wactor (Oakland, Calif./Head-Royce) was right behind him, finishing in 52.01. Both were career bests, and both will run in tomorrow's final.
Sophomore Trevor Tuplin (Weymouth, Mass./Weymouth) missed qualifying for the 400-meter hurdles final by less than three seconds. He finished in 1:01.43, good for 10th place overall. It was his best time this season by nearly a full second.
Fellow sophomore Matt Becker (Mendon, Mass./Nipmuc Regional) placed 12th in the 800. He broke two minutes (1:59.55) for the first time in his career.
The men's team took 15th through 19th in the 100-meter dash. Wactor led the way with a time of 11.85, a career best. Wactor also set a personal best in the 200, placing 13th in 23.08 seconds. Sophomore Adam Berger (Concord, N.H./Concord) set a personal best of his own, finishing in 15th with a time of 23.94 seconds.
The men's 4x800 relay team finished in seventh.
In field, the Judges had two in the top 10 in the long jump. Berger was eighth, jumping 20 feet, six inches. It was nearly an entire foot longer than his previous career best. Sidique jumped 20'4", good for ninth. The junior will look to defend his indoor title in the triple jump tomorrow.
On the women's side, the top result came in the 4x800. The quartet of seniors Victoria Sanford (LaGrangeville, N.Y./Andover) and Amelia Lundkvist (So. Portland, Maine/Cheverus), junior Kristi Pisarik (Chelmsford, Mass./Chelmsford) and sophomore Kelsey Whitaker (Kingston, Mass./Notre Dame Acad.) finished in second place. They crossed the line in 9:21.61, less than a second behind the University of Chicago and more than nine seconds ahead of third place.
Rookie Ashley Hebard (Pasadena, Calif./Westridge) was 14th in the 200 with a time of 31.22 seconds. It was her best time this season. Hebard was also 15th in the 400.
Sophomore Maggie Hensel (Niskayuna, N.Y./Niskayuna) was 14th in the 800. Her time of 2:33.68 was a career best.
The Judges will finish up the UAA meet tomorrow.