WALTHAM, Mass. – On the first day of action, the Brandeis University track and field team had five scoring performances and two All-UAA Honors as the Judges hosted the 2019 University Athletic Association championships in the Gosman Athletic Center.
Leading the way was the women's distance medley relay, which successfully defended its crown. The Judges' team was made up entirely of seniors. Julia Bryson (Quincy, Mass./North Quincy) ran the opening 1,200-meter leg, followed by Doyin Ogundiran in the 400. She passed off to Maya Bliss (Williamsburg, Mass./Amherst Regional) for the 800, and Emily Bryson (Quincy, Mass./North Quincy) brought it home in the mile, blowing away the field in the bell lap to win with a time of 12:08.81, a margin of seven seconds.
Brandeis's second All-UAA performance of the day went to another senior, Scott Grote (Greenfield, Mass./Greenfield) of the men. Grote earned third-place honors in the 35-pound weight throw for the second year in a row. He tossed the weight 14.84 meters (48 feet, 8 ¼ inches) on both his first and last throws to secure third place. Rookie Jeremiah Fantroy (Atlanta, Ga. / Marist School) also scored in the event, placing seventh with a best throw of 13.15 meters (43 feet, 1 ¾ inches).
The rest of today's scoring events also went to the men. Junior Jack Allan (Wrentham, Mass./King Phillip Regional) scored in two events, placing sixth in the high jump (1.88m, 6-2) and seventh in the long jump (6.50 meters, 21-4). Allan also placed second in the 60-meter hurdles prelims with a time of 8.65 seconds.
The men's DMR scored by placing seventh, with the team of Josh Lombardo (Westbrook, Maine / Westbrook), Churchill Perry (Pembroke Pines, Fla. / Westminster Academy), Jacob Judd (West Hartford, Conn. / Conard) and Dan Curley (Norwood, MA / Norwood) running a time of 10:28.85.
Several other Judges qualified for tomorrow's finals, including two in multiple events. For the women, rookie Devin Hiltunen (Quincy, Mass./North Quincy) will be the third seed in the 400-meter dash after running 59.59 seconds, and fifth in the 200 with a time of 26.33 seconds. On the men's side, senior Regan Charie (Topsfield, Mass. / Masconomet Reg.) will be ranked third in the 60-meter dash after running 7.14 seconds, and fourth in the 200 with a time of 22.64 second.
Junior Lorenzo Maddox (Atlanta, Ga. / Maynard Jackson) also made the finals in the 60 with a time of 7.21 seconds, nabbing the eighth and final spot by 0.03, while Jack Allan will be joined in the finals of the 60-meter hurdles by rookie Dion Morris-Evans (Canal Fulton, Ohio / Northwest), who was fourth in 8.67 second.
Joining Hiltunen tomorrow will be Doyin Ogundiran, who is the top seed in the 800 meter run with a time of 2:16.80. Rookie Sonali Anderson (Fayetteville, Ga./ Whitewater) is seeded sixth in the hurdles with a time of 9.28 seconds.
Additionally, there will be finals run in the mile and 3,000-meters to go with the 1,600-meter relay and six field events to decide the 2019 UAA Champions.