The distance medley relay of sophomores Harry Norton '08, Charles Stoebe '08, Mike Carmody '08 and True set a new school record with a 9:37.61 run. Their run bested the 17-year-old distance medley relay record of 9:39.21, set in 1989.
Dartmouth's distance medley team had the honor of competing in the Penn Relays' "Championship of America" race for the event. Competing against national powerhouses such as Arkansas, Villanova, Stanford, Georgetown and Michigan, the team took fifth place in a 12-team field.
"The distance medley was probably the highlight for us," men's head coach Barry Harwick '77 said. "Getting [True] in there and running a [3:]57 anchor was pretty phenomenal."
True's run was unprecedented; his 3:57.76 anchor leg on the medley relay for the 1600 meters was the best a Dartmouth runner has ever done in the event. Given that the 1600-meter distance is about 10 yards short of a mile, True's run is equivalent to a sub-4:00 mile -- a feat no other Dartmouth athlete has accomplished. The school record for the mile is 4:02, held by Sam Wilbur '94.
"We've obviously known that [True] was very good; that's the fastest any Dartmouth runner has done at that distance," Harwick said. "To do it at the Penn Relays, coming down the last straightaway, he made [the race] very exciting to watch and be a part of."
The Big Green also had strong individual performances in the distance events. Schorr took second in the championship division of the 3k with a 9:40.85 run.
Mucchetti had a strong finish in setting a new personal best in the 5k, covering the last 200 meters in 30 seconds to clock in at 14:15.91, good for 10th in the championship race.
As the meet was primarily a relay meet, Dartmouth had several relays competing in addition to the distance medley relay.
The men's 4x800 meter relay team ran "very, very well," in the words of Harwick, as Carmody, Norton, Trevor Middleton '09 and True combined to turn in a 7:33.69 effort.
The sprinting corps also had a productive day at the track, as David Berman '09, Calvin Richardson '06, Brian Evans '08 and Fatih Stanley '06 combined in both the 4x100 and 4x200, crossing in 42.25 seconds and 1:28.33, respectively.
Additionally, Dartmouth's 4x400 relay team competed in a special all-Ivy race, as Stanley, Richardson, Julian Thomas '09 and Stoebe finished fifth in 3:18.93.
The Lady Green saw its 4x800 meter relay of Lydia Blandy '06, Angela Broad '06, Marcy van Arnam '09 and Megan Olds '06 combine to run 9:13.94.
With the relay meet over, Dartmouth will now fully turn its attention toward the Heptagonal (Ivy League) Championship meet, which will be held at Penn next Saturday and Sunday. While the Big Green can certainly look forward to strong performances from its top athletes, it will be difficult to predict overall team results.
Both the men and women are looking to improve upon their finishes at indoor Heps this winter, as the men finished sixth and the women seventh.
The men will count on strong, potentially title-winning performances from True in the 1500 meters, Carmody in the 800, Stanley in the 100 and 200, Rob Kerris '07 in the shot put and discus throw and Mucchetti in the 5k.
The women will look to Kelsey Wiegmann '06 in the javelin, heptathlon and high jump, Jamila Smith '06 in all of the throwing events, Schorr in the distance events and Mattie Chatterton-Richmond '06 in the long and triple jump to lead the way for the women.
Women's head coach Sandra Ford-Centonze is confident that the Lady Green will be able to better their winter showing, citing the additional outdoor events as ones in which the women excel.
"We have had some good performances by some of our underclassmen, with improvements at each meet," Ford-Centonze said. "I am looking forward to an exciting event with one of the top leagues in the country."
