Army West Point Athletics
Army West Point
Penn Classic
Track and Field Sees Five Top Five Finishes at Penn Classic
February 08, 2025 | Men's Track and Field, Women's Track and Field
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — Army West Point Track and Field participated in the Penn Classic at the Ott Center on Saturday, with several athletes earning top finishes.
In the meet hosted by the University of Pennsylvania, the Black Knights competed against nine different schools, including Bucknell, Columbia, Cornell, Georgetown, Hampton, Howard, Penn, Princeton and Villanova.
The highlight for the Black Knights was Robby Manse, who earned a first-place finish in the weight throw and a second-place finish in the shot put.
Robby Manse won the weight throw with a 19.20m throw, the best of all three of his throws that were over 19 meters. He also threw a personal 17.74m in the shot out, helping him clinch second place in a competitive field, being only .85 meters from first place.
Chad Dohl also had a strong performance in the 60m dash, finishing fifth in the event on Saturday. Dohl ran a personal best of 6.89 seconds in the event to clinch a spot in the top five.
Kasen Jeitz also saw a top-five finish on the day, finishing fifth in the 800m run. Jeitz finished the final with a 1:48.69 time, just over one second behind the program record holder Luke Griner with a 1:47.47 time. Jeits no also ranks in the top 50 times in the NCAA in the event.
On the women's side, several athletes saw top finishes in several events, including two top-three finishes.
Skye Chambers saw the best finishes out of all the women's athletes on the day, earning a second-place finish in the 800m run. She finished with a 2:11.42 time.
Faith Kibbe also earned a third-place finish in the 500m run. The freshman finished the event running a 1:16.02.
The Black Knights return to action a this weekend as they head to Boston, Massachusetts for the Eagle Elite Invitational hosted by Boston College on February 14 and the David Hemery Valentine Invitational hosted by Boston University on February 14-15.
Hear From Coach Smith:
We had a good week of practice with a lot of energy and that isn't easy coming off the emotional demands of the Star meet last weekend. I was really pleased with how we managed the transition into the next chapter of our season. So Saturday, we took a small group to the Penn Classic at the brand new Ott Center at the University of Pennsylvania. Many of the Star Meet competitors were resting this weekend. The roster here was a mix of Star Meet competitors and a solid group of our younger people that are trying to make the Patriot League roster. The highlight of the meet was Robby Manse's ('26) win in the weight throw and his personal best in the shot put. Robby had the best series of his life in the weight (three throws over 19 meters) and was rewarded with the win. He followed that win with a runner-up performance in the shot put (17.74m) which was a significant improvement over his previous best performance. He has steadily improved throughout the season and although I don't think he is saving his best for last, I have a feeling that bigger throws are coming as we enter the championship season. Two other performances stood out for me today. Chad Dohl ('28) ran his way into the 60m final with his personal best of 6.89 in the prelims of the 60m. He followed that up with a 6.89 again in the final. Chad has been a high performer for us in a number of events so far this year but today he probably cemented himself as a top-level short sprinter. Although he didn't win the 800 meter race today, the performance of Kasen Jeitz ('26) was the best NCAA performance for our team. Kasen ran 1:48.69 in a high-level race. His time ranks him in the top 50 in the NCAA and while that is a strong performance, he can run much faster. He made some tactical mistakes that cost him some position in the race but he recovered well to finish fifth. His performance moved him up to the number two all-time 800m indoor man at Army. He has his sights set on the mark of 1:47.47 set by Luke Griner ('24) last indoor season. He will take aim at that next weekend up in Boston. Our entire team will be in action at the Eagle Invitational at The Track at New Balance on Friday and at the Boston University Valentine's Invitational on Saturday.
Players Mentioned
