Penn Relays | Men's track hoping for a second wind

Good weather isn't the only thing the Penn men's track and field team hopes will return this weekend.

With some injuries plaguing the team, the Quakers hope to return to top form in time for the commencement of the Penn Relays. If the Red and Blue can do so, coach Charlie Powell is sure they will find success starting tomorrow.

"We're known as a sprint powerhouse, but we will have a good 4x100 meters relay team," Powell said. "We will have a great anchor in Joey Brown. We will have a very good 4x400 meters relay if we are healthy, but we can't risk people because of Heptagonals."

If all goes as planned, the 4x100 relay team will be all seniors, including Brown at anchor. Brown was able to qualify for the IC4A Championships in the 100 meters during last weekend's meet against Oxford and Cambridge, finally hitting the requisite mark of 10.85. This was the third time this season he was able to break 11 seconds and the third time he won the event.

The Lawrenceville, N.J., native and the rest of the team's 16 seniors should play a major role for the Quakers in this weekend's races, but they should also have strong support from the underclassmen.

Junior Anthony Abitante will look to repeat his stellar performance in the pole vault this past Saturday, when he cleared the bar at 5.16 meters. That effort placed him in a tie for third place in Penn's all-time record book and qualified him for Regional Championships.

Junior John Carelli is also hoping to continue the success he has found thus far this season. He will be joining Abitante at Regional Championships. With his career best jump of 15.33 meters last Saturday, he moved up to sixth place in Penn's all-time rankings.

The Quakers' team in the 4x800 meters relay Saturday should be exciting to watch as well, according to Powell. It will feature sophomore Daryll Oliver, who has already qualified for the IC4A Championships and nearly missed qualifying for Regionals with his time of 1:50.49 in the 800 meters. Freshman Brian Fulton, who also reached the IC4A qualifier in last weekend's 800 with his time of 1:51.67, will also compete in this relay.

Like the women's team, the men will be facing some stiff competition this weekend, which - coupled with only a week of rest and preparation - will lead to some daunting tasks for the Quakers.

But Powell is sure of his team's ability to overcome those issues.

"We have to adapt and achieve," he said. "The tradition at Penn has always been that we have been able to adapt."

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