4x400 Title Puts Stamp On ECAC/IC4A Indoor Championships For Track and Field

Published: Sunday, March 5, 2023

The NJIT track and field teams wrapped up their indoor season and the ECAC/IC4A Indoor Championships with a title and several noteworthy efforts on the meet's third and final day of competition.

EVENT CHAMPIONS

  • After qualifying for the IC4A final in the 4x400 Relay Saturday with a time of 3:17.93, the quartet of Jordan Lee, Lossenie Fofana, Matt Bacchi and Jacob Leigh reset the school record of 3:15.64 from this year's America East Championships and won the event Sunday with a Highlander-best 3:13.19.
  • Leigh's anchor leg split of 46.22 was exceptionally impressive, as he took the Highlanders from third place to the title during his run.
  • Lee stepped into a new role of leadoff and produced an outstanding 49.64 run, but trouble with the first baton exchange put the Highlanders in last place in their heat.
  • Fofana (48.9 split) and Bacchi (48.46) helped bring NJIT back into third and put Leigh into position to chase down the field and give NJIT its first IC4A title in program history.
  • In a sign of growth and momentum heading into outdoor season, NJIT's winning time at IC4A (3:13.19) was more than 2 seconds faster than their second-place America East Championships time from two weeks prior (3:15.64) and would have beaten AE champion UMass Lowell's winning time of 3:14.18.


OTHER MEDALISTS (TOP 6) AND ALL-EAST (TOP 8) PERFORMANCES

  • Leigh also took bronze in the 200 meters by breaking the school record for the second time in as many days, improving on Saturday's 21.52 to Sunday's 21.45.
  • Elisha Bugasch followed up his third place showing in the 500 meters prelims with an IC4A medalist-clinching fifth place run of 1:04.46 (personal best).
  • Jaden Johnson took All-East honors with his seventh-place performance in the Triple Jump, nearing his school mark of 14.60m with a leap of 14.57m / 47-9.75.


OTHER PERFORMANCES JUST OUTSIDE RECOGNITION


SATURDAY'S TOP 6 MEDALISTS / TOP 8 ALL-EAST PERFORMERS 

  • Maria Owens scored NJIT's first points of the Championships with a fourth place finish in the Long Jump (5.49m / 18-0.25).