Boston University Valentine Invitational Results

The New York University men's track & field team continues to hold its own against some of the nation's best teams on a weekly basis. The Violets kept the trend going this weekend at the Boston University Valentine Invitational on February 11. 

Head coach Nick McDonough said that he was especially impressed by his sprinters, who "ran seasonal bests that put them 1-3 in the UAA (University Athletic Association)." 

Among that group, All-American captain Daniel McKinney had stand-out performances in both the 200 and 400 meters, finishing with times of 22.50 and 49.67, respectively. 

Two other Violets, Jon Simon and Gilson Cortes, also had strong showings in the 200 meters with times of 22.71 and 22.72, respectively. 

James Patterson was the Violets' top finisher in the 800 meters, posting a career indoor- best time of 1:53.71 and placing 33rd out of 208 participants. Also notching personal bests in the event were Dharan Kadiyala (1:58.07), Ryan Gilmore (1:57.55) and Zach Kish (1:57.56). 

Patterson and McKinney's performances were good enough to jettison to the top of the UAA rankings, as Patterson is now the current leader in 800 meters and McKinney leads in the 400 meters. 

Fellow All-American Matt Turlip is taking full advantage of his fifth year of eligibility and had another stand-out performance in the mile, finishing with a time of 4:09.83. He placed 34th out of over 240 participants. James Goldstein (4:19.54) and Justin Turlip (4:24.85) also had solid performances in the mile, finishing with personal-best times.

The 3,000 meter race also contained highlights for NYU, as David Knowles ran a career best (8:37.42), Andrew Zitek ran a season best (8:37.79), and Ross Wistar (8:49.37) qualified for the ECAC Championships.

McDonough was also pleased with the performance of his 4x400 meter relay team.

"They ran really well en route to winning their section and putting up their best time in over five years," McDonough revealed. 

The foursome, which consisted of McKinney, Cortes, Patterson, and Kadiyala put up a time of 3:24.21. 

In addition, shot-putter Zach Ship set a new personal-best mark of 10.88 meters. 

The Violets return to action at the NYU Division III Challenge at the New Balance Track and Field Center on Saturday, February 18.