PHILADELPHIA, Pa. -- Chris Balthazar was named Men's Most Outstanding Track Performer following the conclusion of this year's 2023 Ivy League Outdoor Heps. At this year's meet, hosted by Penn at Franklin Field, Balthazar swept the sprinting events, winning the 100m and 200m dash, and set two new records in the process. In addition,
Victoria Patterson earned gold in the 3000m steeplechase.
Both the Columbia men and women finished in fifth place, with men scoring 62 points and the women scoring 53 points. The Harvard men and women both finished in first place.
Balthazar was the main catalyst behind the Lions' fifth place finish, thanks to his two gold medals. He became the first Lion to win the men's 100m dash since 2009 with an incredible time of 10.39s. Then, after he set a Columbia record with a time of 20.81 seconds at yesterday's prelims, he followed that up by breaking his own record, along with the Ivy League Heps record, in the finals with a gold-medal winning time of 20.41.
Patterson represented the women with a gold medal in the 3000m steeplechase, clocking in at 10:02.86, to claim the Columbia women's first gold medal at the Outdoor Heps since 2018. She now has three Ivy League first-place finishes, after winning two events at the Indoor Heps earlier this season.
The Lions also raked in four silver medals. The second-place finishers for the Lions included
Phoebe Anderson in the 5000m run (16:23.07),
Justin O'Toole in the 800m run (1:49.77),
Devon Davey in the 400m run (46.76). Additionally, Columbia's men's 4x400m relay squad, consisting of
Haydn Brotschi,
James Chung,
Max Comfere, and Davey, finished second with a time of 3:08.29.
Rounding out Columbia's top-three finishers were four bronze medalists. This includes
Nikki Vanasse in the 1500m run (4:17.40),
Sydney Goldson in the 400m run (53.68), and
Anna Jordahl-Henry in the high jump (1.69m). In addition, the Lions' women's 4x800m relay team, consisting of
Daniela Quintero,
Lucy Henkel,
Olivia Schmitt, and Vanasse, took third with a time of 8:42.77.
The Lions also made some noise in the throwing events.
Jada Mia Puryear set a new program record in the women's discuss with a mark of 46.54m. Additionally,
Kayla-Rae Gordon threw a St. Lucia National Record in the hammer throw with a mark of 52.44m. Both were finalists at this year's meet.
All of Columbia's other podium and top-10 finishes, can be found in the meet's full results
HERE.
Next weekend, the Lions will return to action at the IC4A/ECAC Outdoor Championships in Williamsburg, Virginia. The events will begin on Saturday morning.
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