Jan. 29, 2000

NOTRE DAME, Ind. — The Notre Dame men’s and women’s track and field squads both fell to Indiana Friday night in a dual meet held in Bloomington, Ind. The Irish men, fresh off their quad-meet victory last week, lost to the Hoosiers, 89-73, while the women fell short, 99-62.

The Irish women finished first in just four events. Sophomore Liz Grow (New Braunfels, Texas) grabbed a win in the 400 meters, more than a second faster than her nearest competitor, with a time of 55.49. Junior middle-distance runner Leanne Brady (Trumbull, Conn.) won her second consecutive 800-meter race with a time of 2:15.20 after winning the same event at last week’s quad-meet at Notre Dame. Freshman Jennifer Handley (Barrie, Ont.), an all-BIG EAST performer in cross country, pick up her first collegiate win in the women’s mile, posting a time of 5:03.28. Senior Jennifer Engelhardt (Battle Creek, Mich.) rounded out Notre Dame’s first-place finishers by clearing 5-7 3/4 in the high jump.

The Notre Dame men, meanwhile, won seven of the 15 events. In the 35-pound weight throw, senior Matt Thompson (Granite Bay, Calif.) tied his own school record with a first place toss of 58-3 1/4. Freshman Tom Gilbert (Rock Falls, Ill.) also earned a notable victory in the long jump with a leap of 23-6 3/4 for his first collegiate win.

In the men’s running events, sprinters senior Chris Cochran (Crystal Lake, Ill.) and junior Terry Wray (Brandon, Miss.) won the 200-meter dash and the 400-meter dash, while Luke Watson (Stillwater, Minn.) continued his winning ways in the men’s mile with a first-place time of 4:11.76. The Irish 4×400-meter relay team rounded out the Notre Dame winners in the running events with a time of 3:20.10.

The Notre Dame track and field squads will be back in action next weekend when the Irish host the annual Meyo Invitational at the Meyo Track and Field, February 4-5.