February 26, 2012

Princeton Holds Off Cornell to Win Third-Straight Ivy League Heptagonal Indoor Track & Field Title

ITHACA, N.Y. -- The Princeton men's track and field team won its third-straight Ivy League Heptagonal Indoor Track & Field Championships title for the third time in program history, accumulating 184 points to hold off Cornell's 176 points.

The Tigers' eight-point victory is the closest since 2007, when they defeated Cornell by three (154-151). Columbia (70), Harvard (59), Brown (43), Dartmouth (23), Penn (18) and Yale (16) rounded out the rest of the standings.

The last time the Tigers won three in a row for the first time since they won five in a row between 1998-2002.

Tigers sophomore Conor McCullough was named Most Outstanding Performer after breaking a weight throw record that had stood for 33 years. His throw of 75-3 ¼ broke the mark previously set by Ed Kania of Dartmouth in 1979 (70-5).

Princeton took home seven titles while Cornell earned four. The Tigers dominated the distance running events, winning the 400m, 500m, 800m, 1,000m and 5,000m. Senior Donn Cabral won his second-straight 5,000m title to become Princeton's first-ever back-to-back winner in that event and the first of any school since Cornell's Zachary Hine (2008-2009). He was joined on the stand by sophomores Chris Bendsten and Jonathan Vitez, who placed second and fourth, respectively.

Junior Russell Dinkins won his second 500m title and his first since 2010. Dinkins' victory gives the Tigers six-straight wins in the event and nine of the past 10. Junior Peter Callahan placed first in the 800m for the second time in three years with a time of 1:49.72, the third-fastest mark in meet history. Senior Trevor Van Ackeren won the 1,000m race, crossing the line in 2:26.08.

Cornell went 1-2-3 in the heptathlon, led by senior Nick Huber's score of 5,446. Fellow classmates Vince Formica and Josh Cusick were not far behind with 5,167 and 5,011 points, respectively. Huber's total is the second-most in meet history and the highest since 2004, when Dartmouth's Mustafa Abdur-Rahim set the record of 5,645. Senior Dan Hagberg won his second-straight 60m hurdles title with a time of 7.98, which tied the fourth-fastest mark in meet history.

Columbia won the 4 x 800m for the second-straight year and the third time in the past four years. The Lions also took the distance medley relay for the second time in three seasons.

Harvard freshman Ben Glauser became the first Crimson to win the shotput since Nick Sweeney in 1992. Glauser's throw of 58-10 ¾ is the longest since 2000, when Princeton's Scott Denbo recorded a toss of 59-3 ½. Penn sophomore Maalik Reynolds successfully defended his high jump title with a leap of 7-2 ½, tying the fifth-best mark in met history.

Men's Team Standings
1.   Princeton, 184
2.   Cornell, 176
3.   Columbia, 70
4.   Harvard, 59
5.   Brown, 43
6.   Dartmouth, 23
7.   Penn, 18
8.   Yale, 16