UB Squads Place Second at Cornell

UB's men's and women's indoor track squads both placed second in the six-team Cornell Invitational in Ithaca. Host Cornell won both the men's and women's competitions.

UB's men scored 119 points to finish second to the Big Red's 180.50. Also scoring were St. Joseph's (104), Penn (85), Colgate (42) and Ithaca (20.50).

In the women's meet, UB was a close second to Cornell scoring 157.50 points to the Big Red's 167. Penn took third with 131.50 followed by St. Joseph's (60), Colgate (24) and Ithaca (15).

The Bulls picked up a couple of school records in the men's meet. Bam McDonald (Rochester, NY/Rush-Henrietta), who also starred as a running back for the football team last fall, set a new school mark in his first collegiate track meet winning the 60 meter dash in 6.95 seconds, the first UB athlete to break seven seconds. Todd Ludden (Hornell, NY/Hornell) was also victorious in the 3000 meters with a school-best mark of 8:41.29.

Other Bulls' men to take first place honors were Mike Commisso (Fulton, NY/G. Ray Bodley) in the 2:30.26, Adam Smith (Varysburg, NY/Attica) in the 35-pound weight throw (58-5.75, 17.82m) and Kamau Halim (Medina, NY/Medina) in the triple jump (48-0, 14.63m). All three finishes were also IC4A qualification standards. Joe Loiacono (Rochester, NY/Greece Olympia) was second in the shot put at 50-2.75 (15.31m) which also qualified him for IC4As.

For the women, Sarah Fletcher (Ridgeway, Ontario/Ridgeway-Crystal Beach) was the lone double winner of the day. She took the 20-pound weight throw with a toss of 54-11.5 (16.75m) and qualified for ECAC competition. She also won the shot put at 42-4.75 (12.42m). Biaunca McFarland (Binghamton, NY/Binghamton) broke her own school record for the third time in as many meets to win the triple jump (39-11.75, 12.18m).

Bernadette Boswell (Yonkers, NY/Roosevelt) also finished first in the long jump at 18-4.25 (5.59m). Three others earned ECAC qualification standards. Christina Keck (Erie, PA/.McDowell) was third in the 1000 meters (2:58.27). Pole vaulters Devon Fister (Poughkeepsie, NY/Arlington) and Laura Olson (Lyons, NY/Lyons) were third and fourth respectively with leaps of 10-0 (3.05m).

Footballers Join Bulls Tracksters

Four UB football players have moved from the gridiron to the track this season to join the Bulls for the indoor and outdoor seasons. Among them is Bam McDonald (Rochester, NY/Rush-Henrietta) who set a school mark to win the 60 meters at Cornell. Also joining coach Dick Barry's program are Adolphus Barkor (New York, NY/Boys and Girls), Andre Forde (Penfield, NY/Penfield), and Javunt Pratt (Rochester, NY/John Marshall).

Up Next

Both squads host the UB Open on Friday at Alumni Arena. Pentathlon competition starts at 4:00 p.m. with track events set to start at 6:00 p.m. Among those teams expected to compete are Rochester Institute of Technology, Canisius and Alfred State.

2000-01 Schedule

Dec. 2 at Colgate Invitational

Men: UB 144, Colgate 100.5, Canisius 68.5

Women: UB 163, Colgate 101, Cansius 61

Dec. 9 at Kent Open No team scoring

Jan. 20 at Cornell Invitational

Men: 2nd of 6 Women: 2nd of 6

Jan. 26 UB OPEN BUFFALO, NY

Feb. 3 at E. Michigan Inv. Ypsilanti, MI

Feb. 9-10 at Cannon IV Classic Indianapolis, IN

Feb. 17 at Cornell Kane Inv. Ithaca, NY

Feb. 23-24 at MAC Championships Mt. Pleasant, MI

Mar. 3-4 at ECAC & IC4A Champs Boston, MA

Mar. 8-10 at NCAA Championships Fayetteville, AR