May 15, 2010
PRINCETON, N.J. - Navy's Mark Van Orden captured All-East distinction for the fourth time in his career to highlight the men's track & field team's first-two days at the IC4A Championship at Weaver Stadium.
Van Orden, a three-time Patriot League champion in the hammer throw and a candidate for a NCAA regional bid, uncorked a second-place toss of 62.35 meters (204'7"). The effort was the best of his career, topping his previous record of 62.11 meters (203'9") in the Star Meet against Army last month.
Powered by Van Orden's performance, the Midshipmen concluded Saturday's action in 14th place with eight points.
In the 1,500-meter run, all three of Navy's runners earned a spot in Sunday's finals. Cody Rome placed second in his heat and sixth overall with a time of 3:46.06, while Dominic DellaPelle placed fourth in the same heat and 12th overall with a 3:49.07 clocking. Andrew Hanko also finished fourth in his heat with a 3:48.13 showing to rank 11th overall and claim a berth in the finals.
Four other Midshipmen runners captured a spot in Sunday's finals during Saturday's action. David Ash, Lucas Connelly, George Stevenson and Matthew Evers combined for an eighth-place time, third in their heat, of 7:32.36 in the 4x800-meter relay.
The quartet of Alex Jackson, Travis Fanning, Kolton Kempel and Lorenzo Armijo combined for a time of 3:18.36 in the 4x400-meter relay trials to conclude the action on Saturday afternoon.
On Friday evening, two Navy distance runners took to the track. Dean Black nearly claimed points for the Mids with a 10th-place time of 9:00.98 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and Ken Bunnell landed 24th overall with a 14:40.78 effort in the 5,000-meter run.
In addition to the final-qualifying performances on Saturday, Chris Ricks, Miles Snelgrove and Tim Gruber will all compete in the javelin throw and Joshua Houston will partake in the high jump on Sunday at the IC4A Championship.
