NYC Gotham Cup a Tune-Up for Violet Track

Rachel Ruecker, Deputy Sports Editor

Following last week’s season opening effort that saw the NYU men’s track and field team finish in third place and the women in sixth, the teams were back in action Friday for the New York City Gotham Cup at the Ocean Breeze Track and Field Facility on Staten Island. Last week’s competition was scored by team, but this week was centered around individual performance, bringing the best out of many of its participants.

The men’s 3,000-meter competition was full of Violets. Junior Jorge Maldonado came in 17th place with a time of 8:46.14, sophomore Neil Saddler came in 25th with a time of 8:51.16 and freshman Ben Haderle rounded out the group with a 29th place finish and a time of 8:55.53.

In the 1,000-meter, there was also a myriad of runners who placed as sophomore Sam Praveen came in 36th, clocking in at 2:42.29, while freshman Sahisnu Malapati placed 42nd and clocked in at 2:48.60. Lastly, freshman Julian Marrufo placed 46th and took 2:52.94 to complete the course. Malapati admitted that it wasn’t the most ideal start to the season.

“The meet was the first time I raced on a banked track so it was weird,” Malapati said. “Also being in such an unfamiliar event was different. I think I have a lot to learn about collegiate racing and how aggressive it is. I wasn’t really happy with my performance as the pace of the race ended up being much slower than expected and I was nervous to take control.”

Though disappointed, Malapati added, “Overall, it was an interesting experience and I look forward to become more comfortable in my future events.”

In the 4×800-meter relay, the NYU team came in eighth place and took 3:23.26 to complete the relay, with many of its participants having solid races of their own, including junior Budd Brown who placed 10th in the 400-meter clocking in just under the 50 second mark at 49.82.

A notable finish also came with freshman Soham Kamat as he ran 800-meter in just a fraction over two minutes to come in 27th place. Also competing in the 800-meter race was junior Curtis Mann who finished in 42nd with a time of 2:02.86 and fellow junior Eddie Cruz-Desintonio who came in 50th and clocked in at 2:04.60.

Kamat was pleased with his race, but knows he’s got a long way to go.

“As this was the first 800-meter of my collegiate career, I have a lot to learn about racing,” Kamat said. “The time was a decent starting point, but I’m confident that with the team and coaching staff here at NYU, we will all be able to run much faster times.”

It was also a busy day for the women. Senior Becky Turlip placed 21st in the mile race with a time of 5:17.26. Other Violets finishers in the mile included juniors Justine Morris who came in 28th, clocking in at 5:33.36 and Chey Watts in 37th with a time of 5:47.12.

In the 3,000-meter, there were many Violets who proved their merit, including sophomore Maggie Lalowski, who led the squad with a time of 10:45.06, good enough for 31st place. Senior Lily Corsaro — NYU’s lone representative at cross country nationals earlier in the year — finished five spots back in 36th and sophomore Emily Dethlefs rounded out the 3000-meter competitors, finishing in 40th place.

A couple of Violets also competed in the 800-meter competition, with sophomore Ireland Gibson finishing first for the Violets in 22nd place, and junior Wendy He 30 spots back in 52nd.

Freshman Mary Conti showed great promise as she was the first Violet to cross the finish line in the 400-meter race where she finished in 57th. Rounding out the NYU squad were 69th place finisher Drew Washington and 82nd place finisher sophomore Alexa Goldman.

Both teams will be in action on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 29-30, at the John Thomas Terrier Invite in Boston, Massachusetts.

Email Rachel Ruecker at [email protected].