ANOTHER SECOND AT PENN RELAYS
Stanford men strong in 4xMile; McGorty wins in Berkeley
PHILADELPHIA – The mile was the focus for the Stanford men’s track and field team Saturday, on both coasts.
At the Penn Relays, the Cardinal finished second in a nationally-televised 4xMile relay at the 120th annual meet.
At the Brutus Hamilton Invitational in Berkeley, Stanford freshman Sean McGorty won the Don Bowden Mile in a personal best 4:00.35. McGorty, who is redshirting, beat Cal’s Thomas Joyce, the Big Meet 1,500-meter winner, by 0.14.
At Franklin Field, Stanford also was fifth in the men’s 4x800 relay. Both Stanford races were part of the Championship of America series highlighting collegiate relays over the course of the meet. Overall, Stanford placed second in three relays, as well as third and fifth.
Stanford’s 4xMile team of Marco Bertolotti (4:11.2 split), Tyler Stutzman (3:59.9), Erik Olson (4:02.0), and Michael Atchoo (4:04.6) clocked 16:17.83. Oregon won in 16:09.67, the fourth-fastest time in collegiate history.
Bertolotti waded through a slow congested field on the opening leg. Pushing and shoving knocked him off balance early, but Bertolotti wielded some elbows of his own to force his way from seventh to second, behind only Villanova, on his final lap.
Oregon put Edward Cheserek, the most dominant runner in collegiate running in the second leg and he bolted into the lead. Only Stanford’s Tyler Stutzman made a true effort to go with Cheserek, who ran a 3:56.4 split. Stutzman’s 3:59.9 was Stanford’s fastest leg and the third-fastest split among all 52 runners in the event.
Olson shook Kentucky, the only other team within striking distance of Stanford, and Atchoo made sure one threatened the Cardinal’s position over the final leg.
In the 4x800, Stanford’s team of Scott Buttinger (1:53.14), Justin Brinkley (1:51.57), Marco Bertolotti (1:50.89), and Luke Lefebure (1:49.40) finished with a time of 7:24.99. Villanova won in 7:16.58, with Penn State second, Georgetown third, and Wake Forest fourth.
Bertolotti was the only Stanford runner in both relays. His legs were 3 hours, 15 minutes apart.
At Edwards Stadium, McGorty shattered his personal best of 4:04.47. Now, Stanford has six milers with bests of 4:02 or faster. Chris Miltenberg, Stanford’s Franklin P. Johnson Director of Track and Field, is redshirting all but one of his outstanding freshman distance class in an effort to build a solid base of training that will benefit the program for years to come. Buttinger, the Canadian 800 specialist, is the only freshman competing in a Stanford singlet this spring.
McGorty, the reigning U.S. junior national cross-country champion, is a versatile runner who finished second in the U.S. junior 1,500 last year. He already has cleared the time requirements in the 1,500 and 5,000 for the IAAF Junior World Championships this summer in Eugene, Ore. He must finish first or second in the U.S. junior championships in Sacramento to qualify.
Another Stanford athlete who should contend for a World Junior spot is freshman discus thrower Valarie Allman. She was second Saturday to former Louisville standout Jere Summers (187-4), but her throw of 184-1 was consistent with her strong efforts all season. In her four competitions this spring, Allman has exceeded 180 feet.
Results:
Penn Relays results link: http://pennrelaysonline.com/Results/schedule.aspx?DB_OEM_ID=1720
Brutus Hamilton Invitational results attached.
For more information, contact:
David Kiefer
Assistant Athletic Communications Director
Stanford University
dkiefer@stanford.edu
(650) 759-0258, cell
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