Army West Point Athletics
Army West Point
Brant Tolsma Invitational
Griner Breaks 800m Academy Record to Highlight Weekend for Men’s Track & Field
January 23, 2023 | Men's Track and Field
STATEN ISLAND, NY – Junior Luke Griner highlighted the weekend for Army West Point men's track and field, breaking the academy record in the 800m which has stood for over 30 years.
The Black Knights sent athletes to three locations across the weekend, with a majority of the team competing at the Villanova Invite at Ocean Breeze.
Griner was apart of just three total Army athletes at the Eagle Invitational hosted by Boston College on Friday. Griner's time of 1:49.13 in the 800m set a new standard in the academy record books, breaking the previous record of 1:40.63 set by Kevin Williams in 1991 at Boston University. The record was set at the Track at New Balance as Grine would win the event by a margin greater than five seconds faster than the runner-up.
The Black Knights also sent a pair to the Brent Tolsma Invitational hosted by Liberty University. David Counts stood out for Army, landing a fifth-place finish in the heptathlon with a 4857 score which also no ranks fifth on Army's all-time list.
At the Villanova Invite, Cam Smith logged the lone victory for Army, posting a 19.18m weight throw to top the remainder of the field. The Black Knights were well represented in the throwing events, with Luke Noonan placing third in the shot put with a 15.56m mark.
Rounding out the top-five finishers for Army in the field events, Caleb Smith's 6.67m long jump tabbed a fifth-place finish. Shawn Carter added a fifth place in the 400m with a time of 49.80s while Brian Matthew's mark of 7.08s in the 200m also landed him a fifth-place showing.
Results
Eagle Invitational
Brant Tolsma Invitational
Villanova Invitational
Army Top Finishers
Eagle Invitational at Boston College:
800m: Luke Griner (1:49.13) - 1st
Long Jump: Javan Guevara-Cragwell (6.74m) - 2nd
Brant Tolsma Invitational at Liberty:
Heptathlon: David Counts (4857) - 5th
Villanova Invitational
Weight Throw: Cam Smith (19.18m) - 1st
Shot Put: Luke Noonan (15.56m) - 3rd
Long Jump: Caleb Smith (6.67m) - 5th
High Jump: Jacob Hyatt (1.90m) - 6th
60m dash: Brian Matthews (7.08s) - 8th
3000m: Andrew Littlehales (8:39.96) - 17th
1-Mile: Chris Verdugo (4:23.63) - 18th
400m: Shawn Carter (49.80) - 5th
800m: Shawn Carter (1:54.99) - 7th
200m: Brian Matthews (22.27) - 5th
4x400 Relay: (3:20.13) - 3rd
Coach's Corner
"We split our team this weekend to give some key people a chance to compete in some special events. The majority of our team competed at the Villanova invite at the Ocean Breeze complex on Staten Island. Villanova limited the number of teams that could enter the meet so the numbers were not overwhelming and the meet was smooth and orderly. Cameron Smith won the weight throw at the Villanova invite with a solid throw that brought him closer to the mark that he achieved in December. The return to top level fitness after the break is a process and he is working his process. That was our only win today at the Ocean Breeze. We sent 3 multi-event athletes down to Liberty University to compete in a competitive Heptathlon (men) and pentathlon (women) on Thursday and Friday. We have had some success recently with our multi-eventers and we felt like this was the only weekend before the conference meet where they could compete in the multi. Repetition is an important aspect of adapting to the Hep/Pen and Canyon Hall and David Counts are new to the event so this weekend was a valuable learning experience for them. The fact that both of them performed so well is a bonus. David had some personal bests early in the 60m and the high jump and then crushed the 1000m at the end of the day to score 4857 points. That puts him number 5 on the all-time Army list. He has come a long way in the multi so it is great to see him rewarded with such a strong personal best. Canyon had some high school experience in the multi but the adaptation to the collegiate implements is a challenge. Add in the fact that he is a plebe at West Point and it is remarkable that he scored as well as he did this weekend. His total of 4574 is now 7th on the all-time Army list after his first ever collegiate heptathlon. He had a few challenges yesterday and today but his competitive instincts took over and he transitioned well from event to event. He has a great mindset for the multi and will develop well in that event over time. We also sent a couple of men to a meet sponsored by Boston College at the TRACK at New Balance. The TRACK will host the 2024 NCAA championship and is brand new. Luke Griner is coming off a solid winter training block and he ran so well last weekend, we thought it would be a good idea to open him up in the 800 at the new facility and test out his fitness. He ran the best race of his life. His winning time of 1:49.13 was a facility record and a new Army program record. Kevin Williams set the old record of 1:49.63 back in 1991. Thirty-one years is a long time for a program record to stand. I have always thought that our men's 800m record was vulnerable but for some reason none of the guys that I thought capable had ever really come close to it. Until Mr. Griner came along. Luke has trained at a level consistent with what we saw tonight so it was not a surprise that he ran so well. Luke is a high caliber athlete and has the makings of a great 800m runner. He is strong, he is fast and he has aerobic potential. But physical gifts are not enough when it comes to that event. Two of the most important qualities that a good 800m runner must possess are grit and aggression. Luke oozes both. You wouldn't know it if you saw him off the track. He is quiet and reserved. But put him on the track, whether it be practice or competition, and he brings clarity to the meaning of grit. He is fearless and relentless. His strong mental space and his physical, attacking style of running are a lethal mix on the track. He dominated the field of runners in his race this weekend and won by over 5 seconds…an eternity in an 800m race. He is clearly capable of a faster time once he gets into a more competitive environment. I think he will be satisfied for a day or two and then he will want more. That's how he is wired. We will be back at it again next weekend." - Director of Track & Field Mike Smith
Up Next
Army will send athletes to both the John Thomas Terrier Classic hosted by Boston University and the Penn State National Open next Friday & Saturday (Jan 27-28).
Players Mentioned
