For the second straight week, West Chester dominated the three jumping events as they traveled to the New York City Armory Friday afternoon.
The Golden Rams showcased solid performances in most of the events at the Lafayette Rider Winter Games, but junior LeQuan Chapman and sophomore Jay Jabat dominated the jumping events. Chapman once again won the long jump, with a leap of 23 feet, ½ inches, and the triple jump with a distance of 47 feet, 4½ inches. His long jump was almost two feet longer than second place’s.
Jabat tied for first, in the high jump with a final height of 6 feet, 6¾ inches with Jared Bloomquist of Lynchburg. Freshmen Joey DeCecco finished settled for third with a height of 6 feet, 4¾ inches. Jabat also finished fourth in the long jump behind Chapman.
Sophomore Eric Hunter nearly won the pole vault reaching a height of 15 feet, 3¼ inches. Lanny Buck of Kutztown took first with a vault of 15 feet, 7 inches. Junior Dillon Wallner placed seventh in the weight throw with a toss of 44 feet, 6¾ inches.
On the track, the Rams were not nearly as impressive, but there were some individual performances worth noting. In the 60-meter hurdles, Freshmen Mark Van Teyens dashed to a sixth place finish with a time of 8.61 seconds. In the 400-meter race, junior Nick Drozd crossed the finish line in seventh with a time of 49.90 seconds.
For the girl’s team, junior Randi Boothe finished third in both the 60-meter dash and the 200-meter dash, setting school records in both events. Her time of 7.79 seconds in the 60-meters broke her own record from a year ago, and her time of 24.94 in the 200-meter set a new standard at West Chester.
Freshman Kiersten Bond took home the long jump with a leap of 18 feet, 5¾ inches, while freshman Breanna Barber tied for second in the high jump, managing to clear five feet, three inches. sophomore Kayla Owens finished fifth in the weight throw, tossing it an impressive 42 feet, 4¾ inches. Senior Nicole Smith crossed the line in eighth in the 400-meter run in a time of 59.19 seconds.
The team will travel to take part in the Susquehanna University Open next weekend in the final tune-up before the 2013 PSAC Indoor Track and Field Championships Feb. 23-24.
Riley Wallace is a fourth-year student majoring in communication studies with a journalism minor. He can be reached at RW718681@wcupa.edu.