Results
Amherst, Mass. - (May 6, 2012) - The 2012 Atlantic 10 Outdoor Track & Field Championship wrapped up on Sunday with Charlotte taking home both the men's and women's titles in Amherst, Massachusetts. Though short-handed, the Fordham Rams finished fourth in the men's competition and tenth on the women's side.
Charlotte won the men's title with 210 points, followed by Rhode Island (180), Temple (140), Fordham (65), Duquesne (62), La Salle (51), Saint Joseph's (49), Massachusetts (45), Saint Louis (26), Xavier (21) and Richmond (9).
The Rams had a solid showing on day two, as Fordham scored in eight events, which included two event wins. Senior Kevin Fitzgerald led the way, as he won the 1,500 meter run title in a conference record time of 3:47.13 to earn First Team All-Atlantic 10 honors.
Sophomore Sam Houston remained atop the decathlon leaderboard, as he won the event with a school record total of 6,467 points to also earn First Team All-Conference honors. On day two, he finished second in the discus throw (109' 11") and the javelin throw (160' 2"), fourth in the 110 meter hurdles (17.01) and the 1500 meter run (4:47.31), and sixth in the pole vault (11' 5 3/4").
Fordham also added a Second Team All-Atlantic 10 performance, when Sean Atkinson finished second in the 400 meter hurdles finals in a career-best and IC4A qualifying time of 52.87 seconds.
Other individual scorers on the day were Julian Saad, who took sixth in the 5,000 meter run in 14:37.99, Austin Ruiz, who was sixth in the shot put with a season-best mark of 45' 4 ¼", Nick Delligatti, who was seventh in the 400 meter dash final in 49.17 seconds, and John Cosgrove, who took eighth in the 800 meter final in 1:52.61.
The Rams also scored in both relay events on day two. The 4x100 relay team of Lourenzo Smith, Sean Atkinson, Nick Delligatti, and Frank Massaro placed eighth in a season-best time of 42.66 seconds, while the 4x400 relay team of Atkinson, Delligatti, Michael Rossi, and Fitzgerald were fourth in a season-best time of 3:13.65.
In the women's competition, Charlotte won with 167.60 points, followed by Temple (108), Rhode Island (107), Dayton (104.3), Duquesne (86), Saint Louis (77), Richmond (50.5), Massachusetts (45.5), Xavier (39), Fordham (32.5), La Salle (25) and Saint Joseph's (15.6).
Fordham ended up scoring in five events, with runners posting career-best times in almost every event. The Rams best scoring came in the relay events, as the 4x400 relay team of Titi Fagade, Averie Sheppard, Elisabeth Warren, and Kelly Connolly broke their own school record by taking third in 3:43.53. The same group also ran the 4x100 relay and placed eighth in 48.60 seconds.
Individually, Connolly was fifth in the 800 meter run in a career-best time of 2:11.88, while Fagade was sixth in the 400 meter dash in 55.68 seconds. Kristen Stuart was the Rams' final scorer, as she placed eighth in the 400 meter hurdles in 1:02.33.
Other top performers included Melissa Higgins, who was ninth in the 400 meter hurdles in a career-best time of 1:02.39, Ashley Davis, who was 15th in the 1500 meter run in a career-best time of 4:39.49, and Mairin O'Connor, who took 17th in the 5,000 meter run in a career-best time of 18:14.17.
The Fordham track & field team will next be in action on May 12-13, as the team competes at the 2012 ECAC/IC4A Championship, which will be held in Princeton, N.J.
First Team All-Atlantic 10
1500 meters - Kevin Fitzgerald - 3:47.13 (Atlantic 10 record)
Decathlon - Sam Houston - 6,467 points (Fordham record)
Second Team All-Atlantic 10
400 meter hurdles - Sean Atkinson
High jump - David Fajoyomi
4x800 relay - John Cosgrove, Daniel Green, Michael Rossi, Kevin Fitzgerald
Javelin throw - Blair Hassell
