RIVERDALE, N.Y. - After the first weekend of outdoor competition across the country, two members of the Manhattan College men's track & field team lead the NCAA in their respective events. Albert Johnson III (Painted Post, N.Y.) is the national leader in the long jump, while Anastas Papazov (Balchik, Bulgaria) hast the nation's best mark in the hammer throw.
Johnson had three of the four best jumps of the competition at the Baldy Castillo Invitational in Tempe, Ariz., on Saturday. His best effort of 7.62 meters (25 feet) was good enough for second place overall in the competition, just 2½ inches behind Grand Canyon's Aaron Hill, the Division II indoor champion. Papazov was the top collegian in the hammer throw. With a mark of 64.63 m (212'0), he moved into eighth place on the Jaspers' all-time list. Both athletes easily surpassed the qualifying standards for the IC4A Championships.
In addition, Colin Quirke (Los Gatos, Calif.) is currently seventh on the NCAA discus list. An All-American in the event in 2011, Quirke was second overall at the Baldy Castillo Invitational with a distance of 54.40 m (178'6).
The Jaspers are off this weekend before returning to action at the Dick Shea Invitational in West Point, N.Y., on March 30-31.
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