CORTLAND, N.Y. – Cortland won three individual events and one relay, and posted a number of runner-up finishes, as the Red Dragons began their men's outdoor track and field season with a home dual meet versus Ithaca College. Ithaca registered a 109-69 margin in the final team scoring.
 
Mike Verde (Hopewell Junction/Arlington) won the 5,000 meters in 15:37.12, Brett Morse (Saratoga Springs) was victorious in the 110-meter hurdles (15.10), and Wendell Brand (Sleepy Hollow) won the triple jump with a distance of 13.36 meters (43' 10"). Brand also finished second in the long jump (6.51 meters/21' 4.25") and Morse was third in the 200-meter dash (22.63).
 
The combination of Doug Knapp (Brooklyn/Xaverian), Rich Samuels (Wallkill), Cameron Szabo (Owego/Owego Free Academy) and Coltrane Goring (Los Angeles, CA/Notre Dame) won the 4x400-meter relay in 3:32.31. Samuels also was second in the 400 meters (50.56), followed by Goring in third (50.97) and Knapp in fourth (52.13). Szabo finished fourth in the 800 meters (2:00.88).
 
Aaron Jones (Buffalo/Hutch Tech) posted a runner-up finish in the 200-meter dash (22.32) and a third-place effort in the 110-meter hurdles (15.21), while David Soto (Warwick/Warwick Valley) finished second in the 1,500 meters (4:04.79) and third in the 800 meters (1:59.54). Isaiah Brooks (Minoa/East Syracuse Minoa) was second in the 110-meter hurdles (15.15) and third in the shot put (11.86 meters/38' 11"), and Mitchell Makowski (Webster/Webster Thomas) placed second in the hammer (45.00 meters/147' 8") and third in the discus (34.18 meters/112' 2").
 
Sam Haaland (Shokan/Onteora) was the pole vault runner-up, clearing 4.00 meters (13' 1.5") and Amarian Hughes (Marlboro) ended second in the triple jump at 13.14 meters (43' 1.5"). Alhagie Sesay (Buffalo/Hutch Tech) turned in a pair of fourth-place finishes with a time of 11.84 seconds in the 100-meter dash and a distance of 6.41 meters (21' 0.5") in the long jump. Cabel McCandless (Lindenhurst) was fourth in the 5,000 meters (16:09.59).
 
The Red Dragons will host the Cortland Cup on Saturday, April 3, at 1 p.m., with the women's version of the meet scheduled for the previous day, April 2, at 3 p.m.

Coach's Corner - Comments from Cortland Track and Field Head Coach Steve Patrick:

First and foremost, having the opportunity for the members of the team to compete is fantastic. It's been a long road to get here, and we have certainly had some bumps along the way, but that's OK – we've gotten to this point!
 
I'm incredibly proud of the effort and maturity the team showed over the course of the day, not just in regards to competing, but in how we worked with each other, how we handled competing with COVID protocols, and how we handled the first intercollegiate competition we have had in over a year!
 
For the most part, the results we had were pretty 'good' especially for the first meet of the year. While we have a lot to work on, that's expected for this time of year even under the best of circumstances. The first meet is very helpful to identify what we need to work on, and to help the team to stay focused and diligent after a long period of training hard and uncertainty about our athletic future.  The fact that we were able to have some strong performances after such a long period of time is a bonus!
 
For the women's team, a few individuals had strong performances that stood out a bit, which seem to have been brought to us by the 'letter L:'.  Alyssa LaBelle (in the 100 and 200), Catie Lally (in the discus throw), Aubrianna Lantrip (in the high hurdles), Elizabeth Liriano (in the 400), and Liz Spencer (who set personal records in three of the four throwing events).
 
The men's 'highlights' weren't brought to us by a particular letter, but may have been highlights by some sensational sophomores: Alhagie Sesay in the horizontal jumps, Aaron Jones and Brett Morse who both had a strong double in the high hurdles and the 200, Coltrane Goring in the 400/1600 relay, Sam Haaland in the pole vault, and Alex Brodmerkel in the 5000.
 
We're looking forward to the opportunity to compete next weekend at home as we host a few teams for a small invitational with the women on Friday and the men on Saturday.