BOSTON, MA (December 2, 2023) – The UMass Boston men's track and field team hit the ground running in their 2023 season opener at the Suffolk Relays this past weekend. The Beacons showed out in eight different events amongst other top competing schools including Division I Northeastern and Merrimack College. The Beacons sprinted, jumped, and relayed their way through their opening meet for this season, as the squad gets a good benchmark heading into their season.

Sprints:

60M Dash: Derrick Touba recorded the fastest time in the 60M dash for the Beacons, registering a 7.12 finish, falling just short of the finals heat as he finished 10^th overall through preliminaries. Cekoi Smith registered a 7.6 finish behind Touba, as well as Olatunji Alokolaro, who crossed the line in 7.89 seconds. Alokolaro was followed by the Beacons trio of Olutemi Alofe (8.6) Arthur Grant (8.68), and Mocktar Seck (8.78)

200M Dash: Touba led the way for the Beacs' sprint squad once again in the 200-meter dash, registering a 23.24 finish in the 200, good for a 19^th overall finish out of 94 competing sprinters. Melvin Whitshire finished after Touba with a 24.18 second finish (50/94). Whitshire was followed by Smith who clocked a 25.4 second finish, then Kitshenatus Adrien with a 27.12-second finish, and Samuel Darius with 28.44-second finish.

300M Dash: The sole runner for the 300 meter dash was Prabhdeep Bassan, as he crossed the mark in 41.77 seconds.

400M Dash: Hugo Dos Santos represented the Beacons in the 400 meter dash, opening his season at 59.24 seconds.

Distance:

800M Dash: Isaiah Stressman held it down for the Beacons in the 800, clocking in a 2:22.28 finish in the four-lap sprint.

5000M Run: Robert Cannon and Zephaniaya Alvarado held it down for the Beacons in the 5-K, with Cannon finishing in 17:24.16  – good for a 53^rd overall finish out of 63 total, and Alvarado opening his season at 19:25.03.

The Beacons lace up the spikes again next week as they host from the Track At New Balance in Boston, MA. Keep an eye on UMass Boston - Official Athletics Website (beaconsathletics.com) for meet results.