BOSTON — With star sophomore Justyn Knight out for the Boston Valentine Invitational after racing in Iowa the previous day, Syracuse’s hopes to win the mile rested on senior Joel Hubbard and freshman Adam Palamar. They delivered. Racing in a field of collegiates and professionals, they finished first and second, both clocking in under 3:59.

“I worked my way up, and I think we found ourselves in a good position going into the last quarter mile,” said Hubbard. “We were going a little slower than I would’ve liked, but we closed pretty well and we’re happy with the effort.”

Syracuse competed at the Boston Valentine Invitational on Friday and Saturday. Just 12 runners participated for the Orange. The Orange races next on Saturday at the Marc Deneault Invitational in Ithaca, N.Y.

Hubbard and Palamar’s plan was to stay near the front and behind the leaders up until the final lap. With two laps to go, they remained behind in third and fourth place. Finally, with one lap to go, Hubbard burst ahead on the outside to take the lead with Palamar close behind.

“I managed to follow him into the last lap,” said Palamar. “We would’ve liked it to go a little faster but we’re satisfied with the result.”

Junior Philo Germano finished 11th overall in the mile at 4:01:13. He aimed to break the four-minute mark for the first time. Germano knew he had to close fast if he wanted to break four minutes but just missed his goal.

The Syracuse men’s distance medley relay team, comprised of Nick Ryan, Pascal Bastien, Paul Lovell, and Kevyn Hoyos, finished first at 9:47:43.

The victory gives Syracuse the best qualifying time in the event for the Atlantic Coast Conference championships in two weeks.

The Syracuse women’s team, made up of Karina Ernst, Danielle Delgado, Elizabeth Reynolds, and Sydney Leiher, won the distance medley relay at 11:31:65. The win also qualifies SU for the ACC championships with the fifth best time.

Several Syracuse sprinters shined as well. In the men’s 60-meter hurdles, sophomore David Gilstrap finished sixth overall with a time of 8.12 seconds. Freshman Kadejhia Sellers came in 5th at 23.90 seconds.

Published on February 14, 2016 at 7:19 pm

Contact Byron: brtollef@syr.edu