From NYU Athletics

The New York University men's track & field team finished in seventh place at the University Athletic Association (UAA) Indoor Championships on Sunday, February 26, hosted by Brandeis University in Waltham, MA.

The Violets compiled 43 points after two days of competition. Carnegie Mellon University took the UAA Championship with 116.33 points.

After qualifying with the sixth-best time, senior captain Caleb Su took home the silver in the 55m dash as he finished in second with a time of 6.53.

"He didn't have a good race yesterday, but he showed great mental fortitude to bounce back today," said Head Coach Erison Hurtault. "He was nearly a UAA Champion, but he will have to settle for second again. Today, though, was all about him regaining his composure and proving he is one of the best in the country."

Fellow senior captain Budd Brown fell a little short of his goal after coming in with the first seed in both the 200m and 400m dashes. The Baldwin, NY, native secured the third-place bronze in the 400m dash, posting a time of 49.93. In the 200m dash, on the other hand, Brown came in fourth and missed a podium spot by 11-hundredths of a second, clocking a time of 22.81.

"These are challenging fields," said Hurtault. "It is always a big ask to come out and win two events. He gave his best in both, but it didn't work out today. He still put it out there. The competition was very stiff. It just shows that it's not about what is on paper. It's about what you do that day."

In distance, junior Neil Saddler also just missed podium time, as he finished the 3,000m in fourth with a career-best time of 8:31.92. Classmates Robert DeSisto and Karn Setya trailed behind in 16th (9:02.98) and 19th (9:21.25), respectively.

HIGHLIGHTS:

- Senior Curtis Mann placed sixth in the 800m finals by recording a season-best time of 1:58.18.

- Freshman Connor Riley paced the Violets in the mile with his ninth-place finish (personal-best 4:24.22). Fellow classmate Khayre Ali and senior Nick Karam followed behind in 11th (4:27.12) and 14th (4:28.60), respectively. 

- The Violet squad of senior Fred Lam, junior Vincent Booth, freshman Benjamin Heintz, and Mann landed in sixth in the 4x400m relay, registering a time of 3:29.33.

"We have the makings of a stronger program," added Hurtault. "We just have to build all the areas up equally."