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Rutgers ends regular season in Philadelphia

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The historic Penn Relays were completed in school-record fashion this weekend, as the Rutgers men’s track and field team notched multiple top-eight finishes in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 

This was the last competition of the regular season before the Scarlet Knights prepare for the Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships in two weeks.

In the 4x400-meter relay, graduate student Jermaine Griffith, freshman Boaz Madeus, junior Izaiah Brown and freshman Taj Burgess recorded a new school-record time of 3:04.67 to finish in fourth place. Their time broke the previous record of 3:06.01 set at the 2016 NCAA Regionals in Jacksonville, Florida by Griffith, Brown and Rutgers alumni Calvin Knox and Rajee Dunbar.

The Knights finished behind No. 6 Houston (3:01.82), Auburn (3:03.52) and No. 16 Mississippi State (3:04.61). Rutgers was also able to outrun No. 25 Penn State (3:05.13) as the Nittany Lions finished in fifth position. 

At last year’s Big Tens, the Knights did not compete in this event, but with their new 4x400 relay school record, Rutgers would have won the event ahead of 2017 relay winner Ohio State.

The Knights did not shy away from their relay performances and got two more relays into the top eight. 

The 4x800-meter relay of sophomores Sean Martinek, Jared Skalski, Jason Schweizer and freshman Eric Barnes ran to a time of 7:32.16 for third place. In the distance medley relay, sophomore Cole Pschunder, freshman Edwyn Pierre, Schweizer and senior Luke Wiley came in sixth with a time of 9:59.21.

The discus throw championships saw junior John Mooers post a mark of 53.08 meters (174’ 1”) for sixth place. Sophomore Michael Thomas was also able to finish within the top 10 of the javelin throw, setting a mark of 60.23 meters (197’ 7”) for ninth.

Sophomore Tobi Tella and freshman Malachi Davis both added seventh-place finishes for Rutgers in the triple jump. Tella competed in the championship event and launched 14.89 meters (48’ 10.25”), while Davis competed in the college event, leaping 14.60 meters (47’ 10.75”). Additionally, freshman Ja’Quan Mial finished behind Davis with a mark of 14.04 meters (46’ 0.75”) in the event.

On the field, junior Jairus Paul and Davis posted respective marks of 6.93 meters (22’ 9”) and 6.72 meters (22’ 0.75”) in the long jump. In the high jump, sophomore Perry Christie and junior Jordan Lorenzo represented the Knights, posting the same jump of 1.96 meters (6’ 5”) in the event. 

In the 400-meter hurdles, Madeus ran a 52.78 while Pierre followed up with a new personal best time of 54.54 seconds.

Notably absent from the competition was graduate student Rudy Winkler. Winkler was headed into the Penn Relays in first for the hammer throw and is likely resting up for Big Tens in the upcoming weeks.

Rutgers will take next weekend off from competition as it prepares for action at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships in Bloomington, Indiana from May 11-13.


For updates on the Rutgers men's track and field team, follow @TargumSports on Twitter.



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