A combined team of Dartmouth and Brown track and field stars snagged a decisive 21-16 victory over athletes from Oxford and Cambridge last week in Cambridge, England at the Americas Match.
The meet, which concluded June 28th, is an outgrowth of a tradition that began in the 1890s between Harvard/Yale and Oxford/Cambridge and was soon picked up on by other members of the Ivy league.
Dartmouth and Brown jumped on the bandwagon in 1985 and have since paired up every four years for the overseas meet.
Competitors from Dartmouth were all top-six finishers at May's Heptagonal Championships at UPenn. The international scoring system used awarded one point for each event.
For the Big Green men, Tyler Haney '03 posted a 48.4 in the 400 meters to take first place. Adam Horst '00 followed suit with a victory in the long jump at 23-3 1/2. The 4 x 100 relay rounded out Dartmouth's wins on the track with a time of 42.3.
In the field, Peter Pasho '01, Marc Hermer '02, and Ben Nastou '00 each secured victory in their respective events.
Pasho took the discus at 143-8 1/2, Hermer the shot with a throw of 48-7, and Nastou the hammer at 182 1/2.
On the women's side, Brooke Derham '02 took first in the javelin at 126-11, and teammate Allison Cardlin '01 won the hammer with 157-4. Shaina Damm '02 ran the lead leg of the victorious 4 x 100 relay.
In addition to the Oxford/Cambridge matchup and an overwhelming rout of Ireland's Gallway Harriers, the Big Green competitors spent time travelling and sightseeing with their Brown teammates, even managing a four day stay in London. For most the trip lasted two weeks, but a few Dartmouth athletes stayed for longer.
"I think it was great that Brown and Dartmouth could combine to be literally one team," said Hermer, who will keep in shape this summer with the team's regular lifting sessions."It was great that we could work together and win." To emphasize his team's feat, he added, "You know that movie Chariots of Fire? That's based on Oxford."
