Middletown, CT – The Williams Men's Track and Field Team traveled to Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT on January 14, 2023, to battle against Amherst and Wesleyan for the Little Three Championship. This is the first time the meet has been scored since January 2020 and with solid performances in all areas, the Ephs were able to secure the championship.
The meet commenced with field events, starting with the weight throw and long jump. Nick Canora '26 competed in the weight throw along with Fletcher Hoven '26 and Adam Roupas '23 who competed in the event for the first time. Canora placed 4th with a throw of 12.47m. Hoven and Roupas placed 8th and 9th respectively, with throws of 9.20m and 8.82m. Andrew Williams '24, Jeremy Bertolet '24, and Jacob Cohen '24 competed in the long jump. Williams jumped 6.52m, placing 2nd and Bertolet placed 4th with a jump of 6.27m. Cohen placed 7th with a jump of 5.77m.
Following the weight throw and long jump was the shot put and triple jump. Canora and Roupas competed in the shotput along with Jackson Anderson '24. Canora placed 2nd with a new personal record throw of 13.64m. Roupas also had a new personal record throw of 10.35m, placing 9th. Anderson placed 8th with a throw of 10.56m. Bertolet was the lone Eph in the triple jump and placed 2nd with a jump of 13.28m.
Also on the field were the high jump and pole vault. In the high jump, Andrew Williams '24 and Joseph Kouame-Waldman '26 competed. Williams placed 1st with a jump of 1.90m. Kouame-Waldman placed 4th with a jump of 1.55m, trying the event for the very first time. In the pole vault, Aidan Casey '25 and Sam Riley '23 competed. Casey placed 2nd with a jump of 3.55m. Riley placed 1st, breaking his own indoor school record set in the previous meet with a jump of 4.82m.
The track events commenced with the mile and 60m hurdles. In the mile, the Ephs had Charles Namiot '25, Jacob Lehmann Duke '24, John Lucey '24, Victor Cazabal '25, and Russel Blakey '23. Namiot placed 5th with a time of 4:24.11 for his first time competing in the mile. Lehmann Duke placed 7th with a new personal record time of 4:26.18. Lucey, Cazabal, and Blakey finished 12th, 13th, and 14th respectively with times of 4:35.18, 4:46.10, and 5:07.22. Cohen and Anderson competed in the 60m hurdles, with Anderson placing 1st and Cohen placing 2nd finishing in times of 8.31s and 9.06s respectively.
Following with the 400m and 600m runs, Bryce Cooper '26, Jackson Davis '25, and Nolan Holley '23 competed in the 400m. Cooper placed 1st with a time of 51.18s in the first track meet of his college career. Close behind was Davis, finishing in 2nd with a time of 51.56s. Holley placed 6th with a time of 55.42s. In the 600m, Leo Cooper '26 placed 2nd with a new personal record time of 1:24.76 and Mikey Keyes '26 placed 7th with a time of 1:30.97.
Anderson, Cohen, and Kouame-Waldman competed in the 60m dash alongside Jack Davis '24 and Oscar Newman '25. Anderson, Newman, and Davis took 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, with times of 7.03s, 7.05s, and 7.08s respectively. This is a new personal record time for Davis and was Newman's first time competing in the event. Cohen placed 6th with a time of 7.28s, and Kouame-Waldman placed 8th with a time of 7.52s for his first time competing in the event. Kouame-Waldman also competed in the 200m, along with Cooper Desmond '24. Desmond placed 2nd with a time of 24.18s and Kouame-Waldman placed 5th with a time of 24.58s.
In the 800m, Jinwoo Kang '24 and Nate Lentz '24 competed for the Ephs. Kang placed 2nd with a time of 1:56.58 and Lentz placed 3rd with a time of 1:58.47. The Ephs had Zachary Liu-Walter '26, Rick Yanashita '26, and Oliver Hall '23 in the 1000m. Liu-Walter placed 2nd with a time of 2:39.12 for his first time competing in the event in college. Yanashita also competed in the event for the first time in college and finished 5th with a time of 2:41.11. Close behind was Hall who finished in 6th with a time of 2:43.34.
The Ephs had 6 competitors in the 3000m: Elias Lindgren '23, Simon Kissam '23, Will Spollen '23, Nikhil Denatale '26, Luke Tichi '24, and Reed Putnam '23. Lindgren, Kissam, and Spollen secured 1st, 2nd, and 3rd respectively, running times of 8:31.44, 8:34.21, and 8:36.86. Denatale finished in 5th with a time of 8:46.26, Tichi finished 7th with a time of 8:56.86, and Putnam finished 16th with a time of 10:30.28. This is a new personal record for Spollen and is Denatale's first time competing in the event in college.
The meet closed with the 4x800m and 4x400m relays. The 4x800m relay team consisted of Leo Cooper '26, Oliver Hall '23, Nate Lentz '24, and Rick Yanashita '26, and they placed 3rd with a time of 8:17.06. The 4x400m relay was run by Jack Davis '24, Jackson Davis '25, Bryce Cooper '26, and Zachary Liu-Walter '26. They placed 1st with a time of 3:26.77.
New this year the Little Three honored a men's championship team, a women's championship team, and a combined program title awarded to the school whose two teams totaled the most combined points, which Williams won. The Ephs finished with a combined men's and women's score of 289, surpassing second place Amherst by 11.5 points.
The Ephs hope to continue their success as they continue to train over the next two weeks. They will next compete on Sunday, January 29 in the New Balance Facility in Boston at the NESCAC Invite.
