From NYU Athletics

The New York University men's track & field team competed in the Roadrunner Invitational on Saturday, April 2, hosted by Ramapo College in Mahwah, NJ, despite facing poor weather conditions.

NYU placed 29th overall in the team competition.

Violet freshman Daniel Sovich took 11th in the 400m hurdles with a personal-best 58.53. Finishing close behind in 17th place was junior Nick Toristano with a time of 1:00.01.

Junior Fred Lam led the Violets in the 400m with a 29th-place finish (53.28). Following behind were freshmen Sovich and Harley Centner with times of 55.96 and 58.71 to take 42nd and 52nd, respectively.

"Daniel Sovich provided us with highlights today with his exceptional running," said NYU Assistant Coach Erison Hurtault. "That 400m hurdle time is the kind we wanted to see at this point of the season if we want to compete at the UAA (University Athletic Association) Championships." 

In the field, sophomore Sherman King captured eighth in the pole vault by clearing 4.00m. Junior Nick Hespe also cleared 4.00m, but took 11th because he had more attempts.

"The men competed well, especially considering the poor circumstances of today's weather," continued Hurtault. "Not the best times, but the men showed tremendous effort."

HIGHLIGHTS:

- Finishing second in his flight, freshman Abhishek Panigrahi took 17th in the discus with a personal-best throw of 36.78m, more than five meters further than his previous personal record.

- Freshman Yohan Su finished 18th in the long jump at 5.94m.

- Lam and Centner returned to the track to compete in the 200m and finished in 38th and 60th place in season-best times of 24.03 and 25.68, respectively.

"Next week is going to be the opener for a lot of our men," stated Hurtault. "We should have a stronger showing with better results and better weather."