Rowan men’s outdoor track and field team competed at the Danny Curran Invitational at Widener from March 28 to 29.

While there was no team scoring at the meet, head coach Dustin Dimit was pleased to start the season on a good note. 

“We were happy with the performance,” said Dimit. “We had a lot of lifetime bests and a lot of good marks for a season opener.”

The highlight of the meet for the Profs was defending the NCAA Division III 110-meter hurdle champion, junior Kwaku Nkrumah’s first-place showing (14.17). Nkrumah, who also won the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Men’s Track and Field Athlete of the Week, said that he wants to keep running faster as the season progresses. 

“ I’d say it was great,” said Nkrumah. “It was a season opener, so I expect to run faster than that next week.”

Dimit revealed that Nkrumah was not supposed to run, but the conditions outside made him put his star hurdler in the field. 

“ He wasn’t even gonna run the hurdles, but when the weather was that nice, we got him in late and he was able to go out there and run well into the wind,” said Dimit. 

Another impressive performance was by senior Joshua Cason, who claimed first in the 5000 meters with a personal record and top five Division III time of 14:30.66. Cason is excited to build on the strong performance going forward. 

“ I’m very excited,” said Cason. “I got plenty where I need to go to work on it, but continue to build off the great momentum and hopefully keep it going into the season.”

Dimit was impressed with how Cason followed the game plan and was excited to see big things from him. 

“ He ran a really smart race,” said Dimit. “We’re really excited that he ran that early, and he can do some big things later in the year.” 

The Profs were represented in the high jumps as freshman Noah Wampole placed first (1.98 meters) in the event. Wampole described his first-place finish as a good feeling but he knows he can do better going into future meets. 

“ It’s definitely a good feeling,” said Wampole. “I definitely think I could jump better, and I hope I will jump better.” 

The Profs will return this weekend to take part in the Ursinus Track and Field Festival in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. Dimit is eager to see more of his team perform at the meet this weekend. 

“ We just want to go out there and get the work in and get some guys to open up in different events,” said Dimit. “See what they can do and see where we are, and we will use that to get ready for the bigger meets later on.” 

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