Army West Point Athletics
Track and Field Place Second At Patriot League Men’s and Women’s Indoor Championships
February 27, 2022 | Men's Track and Field, Women's Track and Field
| MEET 10 | |
| MEET | 2022 Patriot League Indoor Championships |
| RESULTS | Men/Women - 2nd |
| LOCATION | Gerhard Fieldhouse |
LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Army West Point men's and women's track and field teams earned second place at the 2022 Patriot League Indoor Championships on Sunday.
MEET SUMMARY
Georgia Jones, who won the 5000m on Saturday, was the women's highest point-scorer recipient. On Sunday, Jones placed third in the 1 mile (4:50.20) and second in the 3000m (9:41.22). Emily Mikoud was named the women's field athlete of the meet one day after setting five records in the weight throw. She placed second in the shot put. Emily Fink concluded her standout freshman campaign by being named the women's rookie of the meet after winning the shot put with a conference, program, and service academy record toss of 16.43m on Sunday after finishing second in the weight throw behind teammate Emily Mikoud. Anna Tovkach won the 800m with a program-record time of 2:07.68. As a team, the Black Knights finished with 171 points which are the most since 1994. Navy finished first with 202 points.
The Army men collected 188.50 points for a second-place finish behind Navy. Marshall Beatty capped his historic indoor career by being named the men's track athlete of the meet and the men's highest point-scorer. Beatty captured the 3000m with a time of 8:12.92 to go along with his 5000m title on Saturday. Garret Gough was second and Thomas Vo finished sixth in the event. The Black Knights had winners on the track with Caden Foster winning the 1 mile with a time of 4:04.73 and Justin Young winning the 60m (7.88). Jamir Gibson claimed the shot put title for his seventh victory in the event this winter.
EVENT WINNERS
Women
5000m – Georgia Jones (16:53.17)
Weight Throw – Emily Mikoud (21.89m)
4x400m – Emma Taylor, Lara Westwood-Marsh, Ever Elegon, Anna Tovkach (3:48.06)
800m – Anna Tovkach (2:07.68)
Shot Put – Emily Fink (16.43m)
Men
5000m – Marshall Beatty (14:07.45)
1 mile – Caden Foster (4:04.73)
3000m – Marshall Beatty (8:12.92)
60m – Justin Young (7.88)
Shot Put – Jamir Gibson (17.63m)
2022 Patriot League Indoor Track & Field Championships Major Awards
Men's Coach of the Year – Jamie Cook, Navy
Women's Coach of the Year – Jamie Cook, Navy
Men's Track Athlete of the Meet – Marshall Beatty, Army West Point, Sr.
Women's Track Athlete of the Meet – Andrea Claeson, Boston University, Sr.
Men's Field Athlete of the Meet – Baynes Autrey, Navy, Jr.,
Women's Field Athlete of the Meet – Emily Mikoud, Army West Point, Sr.
Men's Rookie of the Meet – Toby Makoyawo, Boston University, Fr.
Women's Rookie of the Meet – Emily Fink, Army West Point, Fr.
Men's Highest Point-Scorer– Marshall Beatty, Army West Point, Sr.; Toby Makoyawo, Boston University, Fr.
Women's Highest Point-Scorer – Georgia Jones, Army West Point, Sr.
Women - Team Rankings - 18 Events Scored
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1) Navy 202 2) Army West Point 171
3) Boston University 140.50 4) Bucknell 73
5) Lehigh 60 6) Holy Cross 38
7) Loyola (Md.) 9 8) Lafayette 5.50
9) American 2
Men - Team Rankings - 18 Events Scored
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1) Navy 264 2) Army West Point 188.50
3) Boston University 91 4) Lehigh 65
5) Bucknell 47.50 6) Holy Cross 19
7) Lafayette 13 8) American 9
COACH'S CORNER
Women
"We came up a bit short today. I told our team that I was proud of their effort and that they did a good job of competing in the championship environment. I had us getting to 181 points going into the meet and we came up just a little shy of that total but I don't think we could have gotten to the 202 that it took to win today. As it is the 171 points that we scored was the most that we have scored at this meet since 1994. We have the best women's team that we have ever had and we have some of the best people we have ever had in this program but our depth is our limiting factor and it showed today.
About halfway through the meet today I felt like we had closed the gap and it looked like we might have a shot to get to 190 points but we slipped a little in a couple of areas and could not recover. I tell our team all the time that this meet will be full of ups and downs and we have to roll with that. The team never really gave up on the pursuit of the title and I appreciate that about this group. There was a real commitment all the way until the last event. In looking back at how we entered the meet I think we made the right decisions with our people in where we put them. We were unable to capitalize on the breaks when they appeared. We won our fair share of events. Our throws group led the way again and Emily Fink was the star. She won the shot by over 5 feet with a throw that broke our school record, the Patriot League record and the service academy record. It was a monster toss. What we have seen from Emily this winter has been extraordinary. Last May as a high schooler she was a 45-foot shot putter and in the span of 9 months she has added almost 9 feet to her personal best. That is a credit to her hard work and the expertise of our throws coach, Ryan Hershberger. Todays 1,2,3 finish backed up the 1,2,3,4 from last night. Emily Mikoud debuted in the shot with her 2nd place finish and Aysia Salas turned in a great effort in claiming the third spot. In total we scored 57 of the 78 available points in the two throwing events and outscored Navy 57-0.
On the track, Anna Tovkach got our next win with a new meet record 2:07.68 in the women's 800. She took command of the race at the gun and never looked back. None of the other runners even attempted to go with her and the race for first was decided as soon as the gun went off. It was the most dominating performance of the day. She has been the best middle-distance runner in the conference all year and this win was a fine way for her to end what has been a historic indoor career. The other win for our women came in the last event of the day. We have held the top 4x400 time in the league all year and today we took the lead with the first exchange and held it to the line. Navy tried to make it a race on the third leg but could not match us and at the final exchange, Anna held a 10-meter lead that she then extended to 30 meters by the time she crossed the line. her split of 54.75 was the fastest of the day. Jasmine Alderman had a strong day for Army today. Her runner-up finish in the 60 and her third-place finish in the 200 were strong performances. She has had a very consistent winter and I thought she did a nice job today.
Georgia Jones was the other standout performer today. We entered her in three events this weekend in what is an extremely demanding series of races. After qualifying yesterday in the mile and then winning the 5000 last night, she woke up today with the daunting task of the mile final and the 3000m final. It was a tall ask but one she was eager to take on. The mile went out fast and Georgia went right with it. She raced near the front through the early laps and then when the break happened with three laps to go, she responded and went with it. She was right in it until the bell but lost ground over the last lap and held on for third in 4:50.20 which is now the 3rd fastest mile in the history of the academy. Her final event of the weekend was the 3000m. Once again, she ran at the front of the race and was on the lead at the bell battling a Boston University runner for position. She couldn't quite match the speed of the Boston U. runner and ended up hanging on for 2nd to claim 8 more points for the team. Her total of 24 points was the most by any athlete in the meet. Emily Mikoud was named the outstanding field performer of the meet and Emily Fink was named the outstanding rookie of the meet. The big takeaway from the meet for me was that we need to have more good people. We are getting a lot out of the people we put out there we just need to get more of them." – Mike Smith
Men
We knew going into the meet that we would need to maximize our opportunities and that Navy would have to make some mistakes for us to have a shot to compete for a win. We were good in the areas where we expected to be competitive, and we really only left a few points out there. But it was not nearly enough for us to catch them. Once again our stars led the way and as It turned out they are all firsties. Jamir Gibson claimed the shot put title as expected. He has won almost every shot put competition he has been in this year and that kind of consistency has really set the standard for our team. He closed out his indoor career the way it started; with a Patriot League title. Caden Foster got his first Patriot League title in the mile with a strong last lap that no one could match. He has become a great racer and thrives in championship environments. I was really impressed with how he moved up to the shoulder of the lead and then passed with a strong surge that could not be covered. It was his first Patriot League win and caps an outstanding Army indoor career.
Shortly after Caden took the mile title, Justin Young won the 60m high hurdle title. It was his first Patriot League win since his hurdle win his freshman year. After the struggles of the last two years, this was a great way for him to end his indoor career. Our other win today came from Marshall Beatty. After his dominating run, last night all of our guys were feeling pretty confident going into the 3000m final and they ran with a real determination. Several guys from other teams tried to push the pace on us and we covered every move until the last few laps when Marshall was able to get to the front and take control. Garret followed closely behind him and the two of them hammered the last 800 at a pace that was too hard for the rest of the field to handle. Marshall ran 2:00 for the last 800meters and Garret closed in 2:03. It was a punishing final 4 laps under any conditions but is especially impressive on a flat 200m track. It was inspiring to watch and a great way for Marshall to end one of the most decorated indoor careers of an army distance man in some time. In the end, our victories were not enough to win the meet and our depth needs to improve for us to have a shot at a title." - Mike Smith
CADET'S CORNER
"My guys and I drafted up a solid race plan for the 5K and it ended up scoring us 10 points over Navy. We tried running it back in the 3K and it was also effective. I'm proud of my performance this weekend but even prouder of my guys' commitment to our plan and the hard work they've put in throughout the season. Overall, the men's team had some solid performances, but we needed everyone to perform at their best to win. I can honestly say everyone competed with their greatest effort just some minor mistakes here and there ended up costing the meet. From what I've seen from my plebe year till now is intense dedication and discipline to training and competing. We may lack the depth Navy possesses but we balance it with talent. Come Army-Navy outdoor, I'm confident our men will put it together. The best part about being a team that can't afford to make mistakes is that when we win it's a spectacle to watch." – Marshall Beatty
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Players Mentioned
Distance
/ Men's Track and Field
/ Women's Track and Field
/ Women's Track and Field
Distance
/ Men's Track and Field
Throws
/ Men's Track and Field
/ Women's Track and Field
Throws
/ Women's Track and Field
/ Women's Track and Field
/ Women's Track and Field
Mid. Distance
/ Women's Track and Field
/ Men's Track and Field
/ Women's Track and Field
Sprints/Hurdles
/ Men's Track and FieldWednesday, May 27
Saturday, May 23
Monday, May 11
Thursday, April 30