NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Every year, nine members of the Yale men's track and field team are honored at the end-of-season banquet. This year was different in three regards: the banquet was held on a Zoom call, with the team in six different time zones; alumni were invited to join, as the traditional celebration of the graduating class at the Yale Club in New York was canceled; and – most importantly – the team was celebrating its best season in recent history.
The Jim Stack Award is awarded to the athlete who best personifies Jim Stack, the captain and leader of the 1961 team that won the "big three" – the Ivy League Heptagonal Championships, the IC4A Championships and the NCAA National Championships. This year, that athlete was Nick Dahl. In a season that saw multiple school records shattered and multiple Ivy league Champions crowned, this prestigious honor was surely a difficult choice. However, the star miler's performances speak for themselves. From the very first race of the season, the 1000m at the Yale-Dartmouth-Columbia meet, he demonstrated an ability to dig deeper – to find that final gear – in order to win for the Y. Indeed, except for the final race of the season, Dahl won every race he was entered in. His crowning achievement came at the Ivy League Heptagonal Championships, where he stormed to the front at the bell, leaving the best of the league in his wake to win his first title. If it wasn't for some questionable pacing at the David Hemery Valentine Invitational, one feels certain he could have broken the four-minute barrier. The only thing one can be more certain of is that he will do it next year.
Sophomore Phil Zuccaro's break-out season epitomized that of the short sprints squad he is the beating heart of. For that, he was awarded the Gardner Millett Award – the oldest award of the evening – given to that athlete who excels in Sportsmanship, Courage and Inspiration in memory of Gardner Millett Jr., Yale Class of 1938. Zuccaro set new PRs in the 60m and the 200m, running 6.87s and 21.79s respectively. He also won the 60m at Yale-Dartmouth-Columbia.
In a season in which almost every member of the team set a new PR, it was surely difficult to decide who ought to receive the Most Improved Athlete Award. And yet, like Dahl, Will Laird's performances speak for themselves. Going into the season, Laird had PRs of 4:10.09 in the mile, 2:27.61 in the 1000m, and 1:56.14 in the 800m. He finished it with PRs of 4:04.42, 2:24.36, and 1:53.54, as well as a second-place finish in the 1000m at the Ivy League Indoor Championships. A truly staggering level of improvement.
Unlike some of the other awards, one doubts whether the Outstanding First-Year Award demanded much debate amongst the coaches. Marcus Woods broke the school 200m record three times, on three consecutive occasions. The oldest track and field program in the country had never seen anything like the domination he demonstrated over the single indoor lap this spring. He ran 21.39 at the John Thomas Invitational, 21.33 At the Harvard-Yale-Princeton meet and 21.15 at the David Hemery Valentine Invitational. A cruel false-start decision scuppered his hopes of winning his first Ivy League title, but will surely fuel his training to become even faster next year.
Trenton Charles was the recipient of the Lee Calhoun Award, given to the athlete that excels in sprinting or hurdling in honor of Lee Calhoun, the 1975-1980 Men's Head Track Coach. Charles, a sophomore, joined from the football team in the late fall and immediately showcased his raw talent at the Yale Season Opener, running 6.79s for the 60m dash – missing the school record by 0.02s. As the season progressed, he showed that not only did he have incredible speed, but the ability to perform when it mattered most. He shattered the record in the Harvard-Yale-Princeton meet, blitzing the field and running 6.75s. He ran the same time to clinch the Ivy league title a few weeks later. It is difficult to imagine Trenton Charles getting any faster. But with his passion for running, natural ability, and the guidance of George Evans as Head Sprinting Coach, faster he will surely get.
After struggling with injury and illness during the 2019 outdoor track and cross country seasons, Charlie Gardner made a wonderful return to form in the spring. His performance in the 3000m at Harvard-Yale-Princeton, when he ran a new PR of 8:16.83, showcased his tenacity and earned him the Outstanding Distance Runner Award.
The middle-distance group this year was perhaps the strongest Yale has ever seen. The team's four best times over the mile placed them in the top 15 teams in the nation. Allen Siegler was undeniably the talisman of the group, performing at an elite level at every meet, and was therefore named the Outstanding Middle Distance Runner. He won the 800m at Yale-Dartmouth-Columbia, running a PR of 1.53.18 on the flat Dartmouth track. He narrowly missed out on the school 1000m record at Harvard-Yale-Princeton, running a PR of 2:23.12. And after finishing fifth in the mile at the Ivy League Championships, he bravely attempted to break the four-minute mark in the final of the mile at the IC4A Championships. He was dipped into second at the line, but capped his Yale career off with another PR – 4:02.87. He will continue running next year as a graduate student at the University of North Carolina, going in search of the four-minute barrier and national championships.
Spencer O'Neill's quiet fulfilling of his potential symbolized the journey the team went on this year. Going into the season, he had a PR in the high jump of 2.00m (6' 6.75"). He slowly, consistently built up to – and then past – that mark in a progression that peaked when it mattered, at the Ivy League Championships, when he leaped 2.05m (6' 8.75") to clinch the bronze medal. For this, he was named the Most Outstanding Jumper.
Similarly to their compatriots in the jumps squad, the throwers played an essential role in the team's improvement and achievements this season. Without them, the team would not have won at Yale-Dartmouth-Columbia. Nor would it have finished second at Harvard-Yale-Princeton. Andrew Rochon won the majority of those points and was therefore honored as the Most Outstanding Thrower. Like many other team members, he turned up when it counted, setting a new PR in the shot-put at the Ivy League Championships, launching the weight 15.55m (51' 0.25") to finish ninth. He also won the weight throw at H-Y-P and the Yale Season Opener, where he threw a PR of 17.15m (56' 3.25").
In all, the season – though it was cut short – was one of the best in recent memory. The team demonstrated its potential on the biggest stage, finishing top-four in the Ivy League, and multiple school records fell. Expect the Bulldogs to emerge from the current crisis stronger and hungrier than ever before.
