Michigan
Jack Harvey Invitational
Les, Ruff Post Wins as U-M Premieres at Harvey Invite
1/8/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track & Field
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Senior Rondell Ruff (Detroit, Mich./Henry Ford HS) and sophomore/freshman Brian Les (Elm Grove, Wis./Catholic Memorial HS) claimed individual titles as the University of Michigan men's track and field team kicked off the 2005 campaign with the Jack Harvey Invitational on Saturday (Jan. 8) at the U-M Indoor Track Building.
Ruff paced a strong U-M contingent in the mile as Wolverine runners swept the top three positions in what will likely be Michigan's strongest event this season. Ruff earned his second collegiate victory -- adding to a 800-meter title at last season's Jack Harvey meet -- with a time of 4:20.95. Sophomore/freshman James Reichardt (Spring Lake, Mich./Spring Lake HS) and junior/sophomore Dan Murray (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Brother Rice HS) claimed second and third, respectively, while freshman Seth Thibodeau (Milford, Mich./Milford HS) -- competing unattached -- placed fourth with a time of 4:32.74.
Les registered his first collegiate win by narrowly edging junior/sophomore teammate Ryan Gall (Livonia, Mich./Churchill HS) at the line with a time of 1:57.58. Gall crossed the line just 0.01 seconds later -- also posting his best collegiate finish -- as the Wolverines claimed the top two places in the event.
The Maize and Blue claimed a third victory on the day in the 4x400-meter relay as sophomore John D'Arcy (Clayton, Ohio/Northmont HS), sophomore/freshman Chris Stowe (Traverse City, Mich./West HS), senior captain Seth Waits (Grand Rapids, Ohio/Ostego HS) and sophomore Stann Waithe (Towson, Md./Loch Raven HS) combined to post a time of 3:17.43 and cross the line two seconds ahead of runner-up Eastern Michigan.
Competing in his first collegiate meet, senior/junior Kevin Peterman (Livonia, Mich./Churchill HS) made a strong Wolverine debut by shattering his personal best in the pole vault and claiming third among the 16-man field. Regstering a mark of 15-11, Peterman tacked eight inches to his previous best and posted the top U-M mark in the event in three years. Sophomore Kevin Day (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North HS) also bettered his personal record in the event, adding nearly four inches to clear 14-11 in the fifth spot.
The Maize and Blue will continue the 2005 campaign next weekend, heading across town for the Eastern Michigan Invitational on Saturday (Jan. 15) at Bob Parks Track in Ypsilanti, Mich.
Q U O T E S
Head Coach Ron Warhurst
On Michigan's season opener ... "We held a few people out, because you don't know how hard the guys trained over the holidays. So, you don't want this to be a high-pressure meet; you want them to come out and get their feet wet and get some good competition. We came out with five or six kids getting season bests and personal bests, which is a tremendous way to start the season. Each week we'll add more and more people into the mix, and hopefully in four or five weeks, we'll have our team at full strength. We'll just take it day to day."
Senior Rondell Ruff
On his mile performance ... "I got off to a good start; I got out pretty quick at 30.0. At that time in the race, I was thinking that if I could hold to that pace, I could come through the 800m in two minutes, but I slowed down progressively. This was something to just wake my legs up, so I think it was a pretty good start to the season."
Senior/junior Kevin Peterman
On his first collegiate meet ... "It was pretty exciting; I never expected it. I got caught up in it, and I'm just really enjoying it. I really couldn't be more pleased (with my performance); I moved to a bigger pole and PR'ed by eight inches. I kept going for it and gave it a good shot; it was a lot of fun."
On his goals for the season ... "I definitely want to hit 16 feet; I was so close today. I would like to place in the Big Tens and just keep PR'ing every week."
Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
