A.J. Sanford, a Lafayette sophomore and Ocean City native who ran high school track for the Haverford School, placed 6th Saturday in the Bucknell Bison Opener in Lewisburg, Pa.
Sanford ran 19:15 over the 6,000-meter course at Bucknell. He was Lafayette’s first finisher, crossing the line one second ahead of sophomore teammate Emil Arangala.
Sanford ran 1:57.64 for 800 meters in high school and lowered his 800 time to 1:56.58 as a Lafayette freshman last spring at a meet at Bucknell.
Bucknell won the team title 31-47 over Loyola of Maryland, with Lafayette 3rd with 68 points.
In the women’s race over 3,900 meters, Eastern graduate Sophia Staiger, a freshman at American University in Washington, opened her collegiate career with a top-20 finish.
Staiger covered the 3.9-kilometer course in 15:06 and placed 16th. She was American’s No. 3 finisher and the fourth freshman across the line.
Teammate Nia Holden, a junior from Highland, finished five seconds behind Staiger in 19th. Holden, mainly a middle-distance runner, ran 2:14.43 for 800 meters last spring at the Patriot Conference meet, also in Lewisburg.
Bucknell won the team title 21-57 with American 3rrd with 68 points.
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 