M. track wins another triple crown as women look to future

It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.

It was a tale of two teams this year for men's and women's track and cross-country. Princeton's men won an unprecedented third straight Triple Crown, while the Tiger women struggled to mediocre finishes during each season.

For Princeton, the Heptagonal Championships — which include all the Ivy League schools plus Navy — dominate the team portion of the season.

"Heps is the meet we define our season by," men's head coach Fred Samara said.

The Tiger men earned a Triple Crown by winning Heps in cross-country during the fall, indoor track during the winter and outdoor track during the spring. With the most recent victory, Princeton extended its streak to nine straight Heps titles, dating back to fall 1997.

Paul Morrison '02 and captain Mike Spence '00 led cross-country to the Heps title Oct. 29 by finishing first and second, respectively. Morrison also finished eighth at NCAAs on Nov. 23 — the top sophomore finisher in the nation — turning in one of the year's best performances by a Tiger in any sport. The runner was named The Daily Princetonian's Male Athlete of the Year for his exploits. For their showings at NCAAs, both Morrison and Spence earned All-America honors.

During the indoor track season, after some impressive showings during the regular season, captains Scott Denbo '01 and John Mack '00 helped power the team to victory at Heps, held in Hanover, N.H., Feb. 26-27. Denbo excelled in the shot put, while Mack was Princeton's best sprinter and a key member of a number of relay teams. Spence and Morrison added points in various distance events, while Jonathan Jessup '01 was first in the pole vault and Javius Wynn '03 claimed third in the 55-meter hurdles.

On a roll

The Tigers carried over their momentum to the outdoor season. Princeton excelled in tune-ups for Heps, including the Princeton-Penn St.-Penn-Villanova meet at Weaver Stadium on April 8 — in which the Tigers finished second behind the Nittany Lions — and the 106th Penn Relays in Philadelphia April 27-29.

But once again, Princeton saved its best showing of the season for the most important meet — Heps, which were held in Philadelphia May 13-14. The host Quakers, along with Brown and Navy, were expected to challenge Princeton, but the Tigers dominated the field, finishing with a score of 134 — 39 points ahead of runner-up Penn.

Denbo, Mack, Spence, Morrison and Jessup each starred again for Princeton while Ryan Smith '02 and Dennis Norman '01 also won events. The Tigers reasserted their Heps supremacy and established themselves as one of the great dynasties in the history of Ivy League track.

On the other hand, Princeton's women were not a major contender for any of this year's Heps titles. Captains Allison Brown '00 and Shawneequa Callier '00 did their part for the Tigers in middle distance events and the high jump, respectively, but Princeton didn't have the depth to challenge the top teams at Heps.

"We've simply been outmanned this season," women's head coach Peter Farrell said.

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In the fall, the Tiger cross-country team took sixth at Heps, led by Courtney Ebersole '00. But the indoor season was less successful for Princeton, with the Tigers finishing eighth out of the nine teams at Heps. In the final Heps meet of the season — outdoor track — Princeton finished in last place.

However, the Tigers had solid showings from a core group of athletes. Brown, Callier, Holly Huffman '02 in distance events, Lauren Simmons and Natalie Deffenbaugh '02 in the 800 and Sharon Jordan '01 in the triple jump each performed well throughout the season.

The future is bright for the women, as well as the men, who, despite losing Mack and other senior leaders, should see improvement from the Class of 2003 and contend for another Triple Crown.