ROCHESTER, N.Y. – The Hartwick Hawks Track and Field team turned in a strong performance at the Nazareth Conference Challenge Cup on Saturday afternoon, piling up personal bests, program records, and championship qualifying marks against a loaded regional field.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Blue and White continued to build momentum in the heart of the indoor season, squaring off with top competition including conference foes SUNY Geneseo and host Nazareth University.
Field events led the charge as Marquis Jones-McKinney (Astoria, N.Y.) secured a qualifying mark for the upcoming AARTFC Regional Championships. The senior cleared a personal-best 1.93 meters (6 feet, 4 inches) in the high jump, improving by two inches and finishing second overall. Cody Bazemore (Bel Air, Md.) stayed red-hot, matching his program-record long jump mark of 6.99 meters (22 feet, 11 ¼ inches) to claim the event title and further solidify his regional qualifying position.
On the track, the men's 4x200-meter relay group delivered a standout performance, setting a new program record. The quartet of Jaiden Deacon (Valley Stream, N.Y.), Will Mensah (Cliffwood, N.J.), Patrick Conteh (Salisbury, Md.), and Isaiah Sanon (Suffern, N.Y.) sprinted to a second-place finish in 1:35.95.
Distance runners Brynita Haas (Red Creek, N.Y.) and Julia Weinschreider (Williamson, N.Y.) punched their tickets to the Empire 8 Championships in the 5,000 meters. Haas posted a personal-best 19:06.57 to rank sixth in the conference, while Weinschreider clocked a 20:45.90, good for 16th. Haas added another PR later in the day, finishing the 3,000 meters in 11:11.01.
Sanon continued his impressive rookie campaign by advancing to the 60-meter final after posting a 7.16-second preliminary time, placing fifth overall. Deacon also turned in a pair of collegiate bests, running 7.24 seconds in the 60 meters and 23.77 seconds in the 200 meters.
In the middle distances, Erik Higgins (Buffalo, N.Y.) secured Empire 8 Championship qualification with a personal-best 2:05.72 in the 800 meters. First-year Basil Metz (Highland, N.Y.) narrowly missed the standard but recorded a PR of 2:08.77. Patrick Conteh capped off the day with a season-best indoor performance in the 400 meters, clocking in at 53.53 seconds, snagging an Empire 8 qualifying mark.
RESULTS
UP NEXT FOR THE HAWKS
The Hawks will head to Utica for the Blue & Orange Invitational & Multi on Friday, February 6th and Saturday, February 7th, hosted by Utica University.
About Hartwick College:
Hartwick, often referred to as The Life Balance College, is a private liberal arts and sciences institution in Oneonta, N.Y. Through its distinctive FlightPath approach, Hartwick blends academic excellence, career preparation and an active campus life to help students achieve a balanced and fulfilling college experience. With transparent tuition and a focus on health and wellness, Hartwick prepares students for lifelong success—both professionally and personally.
