PHILADELPHIA, PA – The Manhattan Men's and Women's Track and Field competed in the annual Penn Relays at Franklin Field on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday afternoons.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- In the College Men's 4 x 400 Eastern round, the Jaspers took the victory with a time of 3:19.67 from the quartet of Christopher Purchia, Sebastian Perez, Thomas Bonsignore, and Joao Mota.
- The same quartet had qualified for the eventual victorious event on Friday, finishing second with a time of 3:15.78.
- On Friday, for the women in the College Women's Long Jump, Isabella Sing rounded out the top ten with 5.71m.
- In the College Women's Hammer Throw Championship, Thea Dahl supplied a 56.60m for a ninth-place finish in the respective event on Thursday.
QUOTES FROM THE JASPERS
Head Coach Todd Witzleben: "Earning hardware at The Penn Relays is always an accomplishment."
"On Friday night, men came together as a group and ran a huge season's best to win their heat of the College Men's 4x400 Eastern Division. All four men had their best relay split. We qualified for the final with the second fastest qualifying time in our division."
"On Saturday afternoon, the weather made a dramatic turn for the worse. Cold, windy, rainy conditions made a fast time next to impossible. It would be about racing the competition rather than racing the clock."
"Our first two legs put us in the lead pack. Tommy [Bonsignore] took the lead with an impressive performance. Joao [Mota] held off a late charge to earn the victory! All their teammates celebrated the win. It was a great step for the program. All four men will return next year, and we're bringing in competition for those relay spots. They're going to push each other to race even faster. The level of expectation has changed."
UP NEXT
The Green and White will be back in action next weekend, Friday, May 1, and Saturday, May 2, when the Jaspers take part in the Larry Ellis Invitational, hosted by Princeton University.
Follow Manhattan Men's and Women's Cross Country and Track and Field on X (@Jaspers_Track) and Instagram (@JaspersXCTF).
