Senior Kurt Benninger

Men Finish Second, Women Sixth in BIG EAST Indoor Track & Field Championships

Feb. 24, 2008

Men’s Results – Day 2 | Women’s Results – Day 2 | Complete Results

NEW YORK, N.Y. – The Connecticut Huskies swept the men’s and women’s team titles on day two of the BIG EAST Indoor Track and Field Championships Feb. 24.

It is the first team title for the women and the men’s first team title since 2006. It is also the first time the same school has won both team titles since the Georgetown Hoyas accomplished the feat in 2001.

The men finished with 167 points, holding off Notre Dame who finished with 139. The UConn women totaled 103.5 points and the Georgetown women were runners-up at 92 points.

Both the Connecticut men and women’s coaching staffs were named BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year. UConn junior Ellis Gaulden earned men’s BIG EAST Field Performer of the Year after winning the high jump with a height of 2.16m (7’1″) and finished second in the long jump with a distance of 7.34m (24’1″).

Villanova’s Bobby Curtis earned men’s BIG EAST Track Performer of the Year. The senior won the 3,000m in 8:02.91, earning an NCAA provisional mark. Curtis also earned anchored the distance medley relay team that set a meet record of 9:32.89.

Syracuse’s Jillian Drouin was named women’s BIG EAST Field Performer of the Year. The senior won the pentathlon with an Armory Open and Armory Collegiate record of 4,099 points, as well as an NCAA automatic qualification. She also finished second in the high jump, clearing 1.80m (5’10.75″).

Earning a share of the women’s BIG EAST Track Performer of the Year was Pittsburgh’s Shantea Calhoun and West Virginia’s Marie Louise Asselin. Calhoun, a senior, won the 60m in 7.54 and the 200m in 23.85. She also anchored the 4×400 relay team which finished second in 3:41.46.

Asselin, a sophomore, won the 3,000m in 9:20.56. She also anchored the distance medley relay team which set a meet record of 11:16.87.

Seton Hall senior Greg Gomes won his third consecutive 500m title in a meet record time of 1:01.02. Notre Dame senior Kurt Benninger won the mile in 4:00.12, also a meet record.

Day two featured another Villanova relay team capturing a title with a record-setting performance. The 4×800 team of Michael Kerrigan, Carl MacKenzie, Mark Korich and Sean Tully finished in 7:26.24, besting the previous mark of 7:26.94 set in 1987. The Seton Hall women were not to be outdone, as they set a meet record of 3:37.49 in the 4×400. The team consisted of Alexandra McCoy, Janeille Brathwaite, Toneisha Friday and Jernail Hayes.

Connecticut senior Tamara Highsmith earned an automatic qualification to the NCAA Championships with her winning distance of 13.31m (43’8″) in the triple jump.

Final Team Results Women: 1. Connecticut 103.5 2. Georgetown 92 3. Louisville 79 4. Villanova 75 5. Pittsburgh 71.5 6. NOTRE DAME 62 7. West Virginia 52.5 8. Seton Hall 40 9. Syracuse 39 10. Cincinnati 35 10. USF 35 12. Marquette 28 13. Providence 26 14. Rutgers 17 15. DePaul 14 16. St. John’s 10.5

Men: 1. Connecticut 167 2. NOTRE DAME 139 3. Georgetown 107 4. Villanova 79 5. Louisville 75.5 6. Rutgers 50 7. Pittsburgh 40.5 8. Seton Hall 37 9. Syracuse 33 10. DePaul 27 11. Marquette 13 12. Providence 10