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AU Men's 4x800-Meter Relay Repeats as Patriot League Champions
Eagles set school record on way to winning by three seconds

February 22, 2003 | Stats

Phil Gaeta ran a solid third leg for the Eagles to help the 4x800 relay to the win.

HAMILTON, N.Y. — The American University men's track and field team won the 4x800-meter relay today at the Patriot League Indoor Track and Field Championships. The Eagles capture the title for the second straight year, running a school-record time of 7:36.58.

Junior Carlos Hunt ran the leadoff leg for AU and settled into the pack for the first three laps. He made a strong move over the final 100m to close the gap opened by the runners from Army and Holy Cross as he ran 1:57 for his leg.

Sophomore Sean Duffy took the baton with Army out in front. Duffy chipped away at the lead and pulled even at the end of the third lap. He pulled away on the backstretch, opening a second lead with a leg of 1:52.

On the third leg, freshman Phil Gaeta lengthened the AU lead on his third lap. Gaeta ran a 1:52 split, stretching the AU lead to four seconds. Senior Sean O'Brien took the baton and cruised home in a 1:54 leg as AU topped Army by three seconds. The Eagles missed the Patriot League record by just over a second. The team broke the school record set in last year's Patriot League Championships.

Also in Saturday's events, junior Matt Seymour placed fourth in the 5000m while sophomore Danny Maurer was sixth. The race was very tight for the first two miles before the pack broke up in the final 800m. Seymour ran 14:51.91 while Maurer ran a personal-best time of 14:56.48. Also in the race, sophomore Pat MacAdie was seventh in 15:04.82 and junior Matt Cooke was ninth in 15:06.99.

In the 200m trials, senior John Campbell finished 15th, running 23.51. The Eagles are in a tie for fifth place with 15 points.

The Patriot League meet continues tomorrow beginning at 1 p.m. with the mile.