BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Fourteen Patriot League Student-Athletes competed in their respective countries' Olympic Trials over the last few weeks. Army West Point, Boston University, Bucknell and Navy each had student-athletes who represented the League on a national stage.
WOMEN’S FIELD EVENTS
Three Patriot League student-athletes participated in women’s field events in the United States Olympic Trials at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. Army West Point’s Emily Fink advanced through the first round in the hammer throw after placing 10th with a mark of 66.28m (217’ 5”). Fink battled in the hammer throw finals, eventually earning another 10th-place finish with a finals mark of 59.79m (196’ 2”).
Fellow Black Knight Brooke Stratman competed in the women’s javelin competition alongside Bucknell’s Evelyn Bliss. Stratman placed 21st in the opening round with a mark of 48.37m (158’ 8”). Meanwhile, Bliss advanced to the javelin finals after a 53.37m (176’ 7”) mark in the first round, which was good for an eighth-place finish. In the finals, Bliss registered a 55.82m (183’ 2”) mark to place sixth overall in the event.
Boston University Terrier teammates Asia Hamilton and Peace Omonzane each participated in field events at the Canadian Championships last week in Montreal at Complexe Sportif Claude-Robillard. Hamilton competed in the women’s high jump finals, logging a mark of 1.73m (5’ 8”), good for a fourth-place finish. Omonzane competed in both the triple jump and the high jump. She finished sixth in the triple jump finals with a mark of 12.28m (40’ 3.5”) before logging a fifth-place mark in the long jump with a leap of 5.76m (18’ 10.75”).
MEN’S FIELD EVENTS
Navy’s Braden Presser was the sole Patriot League participant in men’s field events, competing in the javelin throw. Presser logged a 64.38m (211’ 3”) mark in the first round of the event, placing 19th.
MEN’S TRACK EVENTS
Seven men’s track and field athletes competed at three different Olympic trial events. Boston University’s Moritz Ebbeskotte competed at the German Championships in Braunschweig. Ebbeskotte logged a time of 3:53.66 in the 1,500m to finish 11th at his country's trials. Meanwhile, fellow Terrier Foster Malleck competed at the Canadian Championships in Montreal. Malleck logged a 3:42.16 mark in the men’s 1,500m preliminaries to advance to the finals. Malleck clocked in with a mark of 3:46.34 in the finals to earn a third-place finish.
At U.S Olympic trials in Eugene, five student-athletes competed across four different events. In the men’s 400m-hurdles, Army West Point’s Brian Matthews logged a 19th-place finish in the first round with a time of 50.81 seconds to advance to the semifinals. Navy’s Jacques Guillaume raced in the first round but was disqualified. Matthews raced the following day in the event semifinals and logged a 50.83-second mark to finish 16th.
Navy’s Nathan Kent advanced through the first round in the men’s 400m after placing 15th with a time of 45.42 seconds. Kent would later log a personal-best time of 45.32 seconds in the event semifinals to place 12th.
Midshipman Brahmir Vick logged a first-round time of 13.54 seconds in the 110m-hurdles to advance to the event semifinals. In the semis, Vick logged a mark of 13.67 seconds to place 21st in the race.
Army West Point’s Luke Griner competed in the 800m first round race, where he logged a mark of 1:47.74 to place 29th.
WOMEN’S TRACK EVENTS
Boston University’s Vera Sjöberg, a native of Stockholm, Sweden, competed in Swedish Championship Trials at Rimnersvallen Stadium in Uddevalla, Sweden last week. The Terrier sophomore easily qualified for the 1,500-meter finals in her preliminary race. Sjöberg then logged a time of 4:18.02 in the finals to earn a fourth-place finish at the event.
ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its fourth decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athlete can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League’s athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes who are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.