University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
NCAA East Preliminary Championship
Huskies Finish Up Season at NCAA Prelims
5/25/2019 9:45:00 PM | Men's Track and Field
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The UConn men's track & field team wrapped up their 2019 campaign over the weekend at the NCAA Preliminary meet being held at the University of North Florida. A pair of Huskies just missed out on qualifying for a spot in the NCAA Championship meet.
In the high jump, sophomore Safir Scott (Greenwich, Conn.) just missed returning to the NCAA Championship meet by tying for 13th place overall. The top-12 finishers in each event move on to the NCAA's. Scott set a new personal best on Saturday afternoon, clearing a height of 2.16 meters (7'1").
Scott was tied for the final qualifying spot with Penn State's Devin Bradham and Akron's Curtis Richardson, triggering a jump off to break the tie. It took five rounds before Akron's Richardson grabbed the final spot. "In the jump off Safir rolled his ankle pretty good," stated head coach Greg Roy. "We got it taped up but it really affected him. He really battle through and gave it his best effort but it just wasn't in the cards."
Senior Malik Snead (Trenton, N.J.) also just missed out on a qualifying spot, coming in 15th overall in the triple jump. Snead had his best jump of the day at 15.56 meters (51'0.75"). "Malik taking 15th, just four inches out of one of those spots," commented Roy. "It was nice to see him compete much better than his last time he was here. His first two jumps were a little off but his his last jump was nice effort, putting him 10th. But the last couple of guys on the board came up with big jumps on their last attempts to fly past him."
Senior Ian Bergere (Madison, Conn.) finished out a sensational senior season with his second-best height this outdoor season. Bergere was 28th overall in the field, clearing the height of 4.96 meters (16'3.25"). "I thought Ian did a really nice job, cleared that first bar and competed really well," said Roy.
Sophomore Todd Stueber (Toms River, N.J.) put the finishing touches on his break-through sophomore season. Stueber, making his first NCAA prelim appearance finished 40th in the discus with a throw of 48.78 meters (163'4"). R-Freshman Matthew Brady (Biddeford, Maine) was 38th in the shot put with a throw of 16.91 meters (55'5.75"). "For our young throwers, this was a great experience for them," said Roy.
R-junior Kyle Brackman (Berkeley, N.J.) closed out Saturday's races in the 5,000 meters and finished 32nd overall with a time of 14:42.21. Friday night's events were capped off by the 3,000 meter steeplechase on the track and senior Michael McGonnigle (New Fairfield, Conn.) was 37th in the event with a time of 9:16.09.
Sophomore Tyler Gleen (Shelton, Conn.) was able to give it a go in the 800 meters, having battled back from a leg injury suffered back in April before the Larry Ellis Invitational. Gleen was 42nd overall in the opening round with a time of 1:52.19. "Tyler ran well for not doing a work-out in five weeks," stated the head coach. "Once the race got going, he really did too; he was gaining down the stretch. For him to even come here, was a big deal for him and 1:52 was a good showing."
"You know, it's disappointing that we aren't going to be represented this year at the final meet, but this is tough, tough competition," stated Roy. "A great bunch of guys who competed really well this spring and really represented themselves and UConn well this weekend."
Players Mentioned
