The full track team competed for the first time this season at MIT on Saturday. While the team placed second to MIT, there were many notable performances that bode well for the season to come, including five event wins. Several freshmen stepped up to the plate and showed that they will be significant contributors to the team, including Tony Haeuser, who placed second in the 55 Hurdles in a time of 8.10, and Andrew Wortham, who placed third in the 3000 meter run with a time of 8:56. The honor baton went to Ethan Waldman, who threw 14.35m in his first time competing in the weight throw, and finished fifth in the shot put with a mark of 13.63 meters.

Bates was quite strong in the throws, as is often the case. Senior Rich McNeil won both the weight and the shot, with marks of 16.35 and 14.87, respectively. In the weight, Bates also had Junior Chris Murtagh finish second, and Senior Mark Liu place fourth. Bates also had many first time competitors in the weight, who performed well and stand to improve a great deal throughout the season.

The pole vault was another strong event for Bates, as Sam Goldstein placed first with a mark of 4.40m, and Jerome Bennett finished third with a mark of 4.23m. Other field event highlights included Brett Epler's win in the High Jump, with a mark of 1.81m, and Jesse Chapman's third place finish in the long jump, with a mark of 5.99m.

In the sprints/hurdles, beyond the aforementioned performance of Tony Haueser, highlights included Ryan Quinn's third place finish in the 200 meter dash, and the second place finish of the 4x400 meter relay, with a time of 3:33.49.

The mid-distance races had their ups and downs. Tom Esponette won the 1000 meter run in a time of 2:35, and James LePage placed second in the 800 in 1:58. Unfortunately there were a couple too many downs, as freshman Nick Barron fell in the 600, and Joe Musso and Peter Corcoran had a collision in the mile. Barron's fall severely hampered what started out as a great debut race, though he managed to come back and run a solid leg in the 4 x 800. Myles Black-Ingersoll ran a solid mile, finishing fifth in 4:37.

IThe 3000 went well thanks to Wortham's third place finish (8;56), and Doug Brecher's fourth place finish (8:57). In the 5000, Sam Wood ran a PR of 16:33. Graham Pearsall also ran a respectable 16:24 in his first track race at Bates.

Full Results