“Take a deep breath and tune everything else out,” said senior Eli Gault-Crabb to himself. 18 steps to greatness. 18 steps to establish himself as a top performer. 18 steps to earn podium status.
That was Gault-Crabb’s thought process moments before he attempted to pole vault over a 5.26-meter-high bar. 18 steps later, he cleared the bar, which ultimately landed him second place overall for the college men's pole vault championship.
“Not much was going through my mind other than the cues that I needed to hit to have a good jump,” Gault-Crabb said. “So, that’s making sure I’m dropping the pole at the right time, setting myself up to take off the ground when I get closer to the box and stuff like that. Unfortunately, I couldn’t pull it together at 5.36 [meters] for the win, but I’m still happy with my performance, and it's a good stepping stone for the meets that we have in the future.”
This past weekend, the Red participated in the historic Penn Relays, a three-day track and field meet that brings competitors as young as middle school students to senior citizens to the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
On Thursday, sophomore Avery Hastings competed in the college women's hammer throw, where she earned a second-place finish with a distance of 55.70 meters.
Seniors Tia Taylor and Madelyn Packer took on the college women's long jump early Friday morning, where they ultimately finished fifth and eighth place overall with jumps of 5.75 meters and 5.67 meters, respectively.
At the same time, sophomore Ryan Brynjolfson was competing in the college men's high jump. After cruising through the first two heights on his first attempts, Brynjolfson was unable to clear 2.10 meters and ended up placing fifth with a height of 2.05 meters.
Later that afternoon, the Red competed in the college women's distance medley Championship of America, where the team of senior Gwen Parks, junior Justine Hounsell, junior Katja Jackson and senior Augustine Haquet achieved seventh place, with a time of 11:10.86. This time marked a new school record for the event, beating out the previous record which stood for 18 years.
A mere 15 minutes later, the college men's distance medley Championship of America took place, and, inspired by the women’s performance, the team of senior Damian Hackett, freshman Jason Meza, sophomore Tyler Tisinger and sophomore Pierre Attiogbe also achieved seventh place with a time of 9:29.30.
In the process, this group also broke the school record for their respective event, which has stood for 20 years.
In the college women's shot put, senior Noelle Elkinton earned fifth place with a distance of 14.59 meters. After fouling on four consecutive attempts, Elkinton was down to her last. She remained calm, launched the shot with all her might and secured fifth place.
In the college women's triple jump, sophomore star Anika Sukumar achieved a fourth-place finish after reaching a distance of 12.04 meters on her fourth attempt. Unfortunately, she fouled on her last go and was unable to move higher in the standings.
On Saturday afternoon, the college men's 4x800 Championship of America featured Tisinger, Hackett, junior Elijah Schechter and junior Finn Boyle, where a strong leg by Boyle secured a sixth-place finish.
In addition, the college women's pole vault championship took place with sophomore Avery Hilliard earning a tremendous second-place finish after clearing a distance of 4.31 meters. Junior Quincy Hansen was not too far behind, finishing in eighth place with a cleared distance of 4.11 meters.
“From Penn Relays, I learned the importance of having confidence in the hard work that our team has put in this year, and the value of leaning on the support of my teammates to get me up and over the bar,” Hilliard said. “Moving into [the Ivy League Heptagonal Outdoor Track & Field Championships], I’ll carry that same positive mindset with me and continue trusting in the foundation we’ve built throughout the season.”
Last but certainly not least, freshman Peter Northrup placed sixth in the college men's shot put championship after achieving a distance of 17.89 meters on his fourth attempt, good for a new personal best.
“The weekend was definitely bittersweet,” Northrup said. “Throwing a personal best was great, but missing out on a medal by one spot really stung. These next few weeks are just about dialing in the cues that are working and shutting out the noise. Just making sure I’m ready when my name’s called at [the Ivy League Heptagonal Outdoor Track & Field Championships].”
Northrup said the competitor and fan experience was a different atmosphere than he was used to.
“It was definitely one of the biggest meets I’ve ever competed at,” Northrup said. “With UPenn’s throwing area pretty far away from the actual track, it generates a crowd of people who are really passionate about the throws. … I’ve always loved tough competitions, and having a good crowd around always makes throwing more fun.”
Looking forward, the Red will return home to host the Big Red Invite this upcoming weekend on Sunday, May 4. There remain only 11 days until the Ivy League Heptagonal Outdoor Track & Field Championships, and the Red is looking to fine tune each event before the meet comes.
