WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – Both the UMBC men's and women's 4x800 relays teams met regional meet standards, with the men earning a second-place finishing, at the Colonial Relays, Saturday at Zable Stadium at William and Mary.
The Retrievers also continued action at the 2014 Pepsi Florida Relays in Gainesville, Fla. at Percy Beard Track at James G. Pressly Stadium at the University of Florida.
In Williamsburg, the men's team of senior Andrew Smith (Chadds Ford, Pa./Garnet Valley), sophomore Nick Johnson (Olney, Md./Sherwood), junior Charles Bolinger (Bowie, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt), and senior Jake Albino (Hampton, N.Y./Minisink Valley) constructed a time of 7:36.97, which trailed only the Virginia Tech foursome (7:30.66). The team's time meets the IC4A standard and is just a second behind the UMBC school record of 7:35.96.
Meanwhile, the women's team of senior Cody Mezebish (Westminster, Md./South Carroll), junior Mary Katherine Kulp (Vestal, N.Y./Vestal), sophomore Essence Fredericks (Baltimore, Md./Carver Center), and junior Sarah Daly (Lake Orion, Mich./Lake Orion) combined for an ECAC-worthy time of 9:13.69.
At the Florida Relays, the women's 4x100m relay team nearly broke the school record and clipped its season-best time by nearly one second. Sophomore D'Nique Phillip (Elkton, Md./North East), junior Mercedes Jackson (Huntingtown, Md./Huntingtown), freshman Mercedes Tillman (Waldorf, Md./North Point), and junior Briana Young (Bowie, Md./Elizabeth Seton) finished with a time of 46.76, meeting the ECAC standard and just .29 behind the record of 46.47 set in 2012.
Both Retriever relays in the 4x400 also met the ECAC standard with the team of Tillman, junior Kalane' Abbey (Laurel, Md./Laurel), senior Kirsten Jones (Brentwood, Tenn./M.L.K. Magnet), and Phillip clocking in at 3:45.83 and the squad of sophomore Marie Yuille (Bowie, Md./Oakland Mills), senior Deborah Adelola (Lanham, Md./Bladensburg), junior Paulette Fogle (Washington, D.C./Bishop McNamara) and Young combined for a time of 3:46.37.
In the men's race, Asanke Ekanayake (Clarksburg, Md./Clarksburg), Darius Oxley (Silver Spring, Md./Blake), senior John Rybak (Baltimore, Md./Archbishop Curley), and sophomore Erick Soetje (Clarksville, Md./River Hill) completed the race in a time of 3:22.16.
The same team also placed 19th with a time of 3:31.61.
Tillman, Young, Yuille, and Fogle also teamed in the 4x200 for a time of 1:39.98.
In the shot put, senior Yao Adantor (Laurel, Md./Reservoir/Morgan State/Maryland) placed 12th with a top toss of 15.28m (50'1.75").
The UMBC track and field team returns to action next weekend with the Mason Spring Invitational in Fairfax, Va. on Saturday, April 12.
