BOSTON, Mass. – It all came down to one point.
That one point, picked up in the 4x400-meter relay, helped the Hampton University men’s track & field team make history on Sunday, winning the IC4A Indoor Championships team title at the Boston University Track & Tennis Center.
It marked the first time ever that an HBCU has won the IC4A title.
The Pirates finished with 66 points through 20 events, edging out Albany for the title. Even though Albany finished ahead of Hampton in the 4x400 – the final event – the Pirates’ fourth-place 3:10.26 was good enough to win the title.
Senior Jasper Savoy, sophomore Stanley Davis, and senior Trey Holloway won individual titles in leading the Pirates to the title. Savoy ran a 21.23 to win the 200-meter dash, while Holloway took gold in the 60-meter hurdles after running a 7.77.
Davis won the 800-meter run with a season-best 1:49.39.
Senior Ramoye Simon gave the Pirates crucial points in the 60-meter hurdles as well, coming in second with an 8.01. Simon was also fifth in the 60-meter dash with a 6.84.
Savoy was fourth in the 60-meter dash with a 6.84 of his own.
Sophomore Gabriel Johnson broke the school record in the 500-meter dash, coming in fifth with a 1:02.92.
Sophomore Isaac Arriola also scored important points, jumping a season-best 14.99 meters (49 feet, 2.25 inches) in the triple jump to come in sixth. Redshirt junior Christian Faber-Kinney was sixth in the heptathlon with 4,652 points.
The Lady Pirates finished fifth in the ECAC Indoor Championships, tallying 45 points and finishing just behind third-place finishers St. John’s and James Madison (48 points apiece). Connecticut won the team title with 62 points.
Sophomore Asonya Anderson and senior Ce’aira Brown won individual titles for the Lady Pirates; Anderson took the 60-meter dash with a season-best 7.49, while Brown won the 800-meter run with a 2:06.32.
Sophomore Meshala Morton was also strong in the 60-meter dash, running a 7.60 to finish second.
Senior Tanisha Greene was fourth in the 200-meter dash with a season-best 24.01, while also helping the 4x400-meter relay team – along with freshman Erin Morrison, senior Kristian Young, and freshman Tiara Robinson – finish fourth with a 3:42.81.
Brown and Holloway will wrap up the indoor season this Friday and Saturday at the NCAA Indoor Championships in Birmingham, Ala.; Brown will compete in the women’s 800-meter run, while Holloway will run in the men’s 60-meter hurdles, looking to give the Pirates their first NCAA title.