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Monday, Feb. 13, 2006
M-TRACK WINS NE ALLIANCE AND LITTLE EAST TITLES
Tignonsini, Evans lead women's team at indoor track championship
GORHAM, Maine -- Senior David Nicholson (WINDSOR) and junior Matthew Zagura (ELLINGTON) each won two individual titles to help the Warriors capture the New England Alliance and Little East Conference Men’s Indoor Track & Field Championship Monday evening at the Costello Sports Complex on the University of Southern Maine campus.
The meet was originally scheduled for Sunday at the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston but was postponed Saturday afternoon due to the forecast of snow.
The men accumulated 134 points to edge Westfield State College (125) to claim their first New England Alliance crown and totaled 148 points to down three-time defending champion University of Southern Maine and win their second Little East Conference championship in five years. The Warriors had finished second to Southern Maine each of the past three years. Until this year, the Warriors’ highest finish in New England Alliance scoring was third, which they accomplished on three previous occasions.
Eight teams competed in the New England Alliance competition: five from the Little East and three from the Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference.
The Eastern women totaled 33 points to finish sixth in an eight-team New England Alliance field and compiled 34 points to place third among five teams in the Little East Conference scoring.
In all, 16 Eastern men gained a total of 51 all-alliance or all-conference honors (the top eight finishers in each individual and relay earn the former honor and the top three are awarded the latter recognition).
Nicholson successfully defended his individual alliance and conference titles at both 200 (22.54) and 400 (49.63) meters, setting conference and alliance records in the 400. In the shot put, Zagura won the conference title for the third straight time and the alliance championship for the second time in three years and won the conference title in the 35 1b. weight throw for the second straight year and the alliance championship for the first time. He threw 50-1 in the shot and a conference-record 55-2 in the weight.
It marked the first time in seven years that one individual won the alliance championship in both events in the same year.
The 4x400 relay of first-year sophomore Tope Ayeni (LAGOS, NIGERIA), junior Mark Lewis (WINDSOR), first-year sophomore Archie Joseph (LIVINGSTON, NJ) and Nicholson set alliance and conference records with a winning time of 3:27.27.
Running the 55 meters in only his third race, Ayeni broke conference and Eastern records with a time of 6.57, earning him a conference individual title and second place in alliance scoring. The old record of 6.59 was set by Jimmy Barrett 12 years ago in New England competition.
With a personal-best mark 21-2 ½ in the long jump, senior David Pavia (STAMFORD) won the team’s sixth individual conference title. In conference competition, Pavia was also second at 55 meters behind Ayeni’s record-setting time and was fourth in the triple jump and sixth at 200 meters.
Additional second-place finishers in conference scoring included sophomore Will Kopplin (LEDYARD) in both the weight throw and shot, Lewis at 600 meters, and junior Rory Maxwell (WALLINGFORD) in the pole vault.
The Warriors used their depth to capture the alliance championship. In alliance scoring, Eastern competitors went 1-2-3 at 55 meters and 1-2 in the weight, won four of the top eight spots at 200 meters, two of the top five at 600 meters, three of the top six in the pole vault and two of the top three in the shot put.
Both Pavia and Nicholson were named all-alliance or all-conference six times each, with Ayeni and Joseph earning such honors five times each. Zagura, Kopplin and Lewis were four-time recipients.
In all, this year’s Eastern men’s and women’s teams earned a total of 82 all-alliance and all-conference awards. Under fifth-year head coach Frank Poulin the two teams have earned a total of 346 all-alliance and all-conference honors in indoor competition.
The Eastern men compete at the New England Division III meet Saturday.at MIT.
Complete Little East Conference men's results
