M. Track: Senior star-power not enough at Heptagonals

It wasn't supposed to happen like this. No, not at all.

Stars Sam Burley and Brian Abram envisioned themselves leading the Penn men's track team to a third-consecutive Heptagonals championship in their senior seasons -- completing the short dynasty they started.

But for the first time since spring 2000, the returning Quakers are forced to face failed expectations and must wait until next year for redemption.

A Heptagonals championship was the team's ultimate goal throughout the spring season, and despite being an underdog, the Quakers had the potential to attain it.

"Everyone would have to have done what they were expected to do [to win]," said sophomore Stephen Hayes, who finished seventh in the 5,000 meters in 14:21.91. "Plus, some guys would have really had to step up. There were some guys who stepped up, but we didn't have enough of it."

Scoring 92 points on the weekend, Penn finished third behind first-place Cornell, with 130 points, and second-place Princeton, with 127 points.

"It sucks to lose," a disheartened Hayes added. "And we're going to keep that in mind. A lot of the performances at Heps by the seniors were an inspiration for younger guys to step it up next year."

Indeed, many of the team's upperclassmen rose to the occasion. Burley won the 800m in 1:49.68 and the 1500m in 3:46.63. His performance earned him the Male Athlete of the Meet award and a standing ovation from his competitors.

Abram, meanwhile, seized first place in the 400m hurdles in 52.14, breaking the regional qualifying time of 52.70 -- a goal which had eluded him all season.

Also meeting their usual standards were juniors Matt Wedge, Brian Chaput and Chris Edmonds.

A consistent contributor, Wedge continued his stellar season, winning the 110m hurdles in a time of 14.25 and taking third-place in the 200m dash with a time of 22.20.

"To be able to finish third [in the 200m] was a really nice, unexpected icing on the cake," Wedge said.

"The hurdles are a race where so many different things can happen," he added. "To be able to go out there and win for a second time was a great honor."

Chaput -- who won the javelin toss at Penn Relays, making him the first Penn athlete to win an individual event in 16 years -- scored the fifth and final first-place honor with a throw of 234'6."

Edmonds could not catch Dartmouth's Tyler Haney in the 400m dash, finishing second in a blistering time of 47.76.

Burley, Abram, Wedge and Chaput were named to the first team All-Ivy, with Edmonds joining the 4x100m relay contingent of sophomore Anthony Archibong, senior Jared Shoemaker, Abram and Wedge on the second team.

However, not all of Penn's usual contributors performed as forecasted.

Junior Adam Chubb, in uncharacteristic fashion, could not win his second Heptagonals championship in the high jump, stumbling to third-place with a jump of 6'9.5".

Additionally, sophomore Nolan Tully -- who blazed to a personal best at Penn Relays and felt that he had a legitimate chance to win the 3,000m steeplechase at Heps -- finished tenth and thus failed to score. Also hampering the Quakers' efforts was the 4x400m relays, which did not finish.

"It was a really tight meet," Hayes said. "If we were going to win, everyone would have had to do their absolute best. And it wasn't the day that everyone did that."

From a team perspective, the Quakers expressed extreme disappointment with their performance at Heps. However, many Penn athletes will continue to compete individually.

Abram will now shift his focus to the regional, which is a national-qualifier meet, where he hopes to finish in the top five and make nationals -- a goal he has been doggedly pursuing since he made the switch to the 400m hurdles early in the spring.

Similarly, Burley's quest for a national championship in the 800m will begin at the regional meet in two weeks. After finishing second last year to South Carolina's Otukile Lekote, Penn's All-American should be primed for a rematch.

"The 800m is really stacked this year," Hayes said. "But I think that he has a really good shot."

Despite its loss at Heps, some of the athletes has not lost sight of their higher aspirations.

Nationals beckon.

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