4×400 relay bests 23-year-old school record

For the second straight week, sophomore quarter-miler Andre Nacaxe crossed the finish line running straight into the Boston University record books, this time carrying three teammates along with him.

After shattering the school record in the 500-meter race at the America East Championships two weeks before, Nacaxe anchored the 4×400 relay team to another BU record at the IC-4A meet on Sunday, March 9.

After freshman Lucjan Zaborowski got the Terriers off to a good start, taking an early lead with a two-lap time of 49.07 seconds. Zaborowski passed the baton to senior Steve Deppe, whose solid leg of 47.16 seconds put the quartet in prime position for the record.

‘When I handed the baton to [senior Chris Brandon], I knew we had it,’ Deppe said.

Brandon took the great handoff from Deppe and turned it into an impressive 46.44-second quarter mile, setting the stage for Nacaxe’s finish. The sophomore brought it home in 47.16 seconds setting the record of 3:09.83, leaving behind the 23-year-old record of 3:10.70. The time is also good enough for 22nd in the nation this year.

‘I told them, ‘You may never get another chance at something like this,’ so it was good that they went after it,’ said BU men’s track coach Pete Schuder. ‘They were pretty psyched on Sunday to just go after it; I could see the confidence that they were just focused on it.’

The relay has been a focus of the team the entire year, as it has accomplished almost every goal it had. All it took to complete this last step was the heightened competition seen at the IC-4A meet, where the Terriers finished third, behind Seton Hall University and Penn State University.

‘It was definitely one of the goals going into the day. We kind of looked at it that if we ran good against better competition, that it would come,’ Deppe said, mentioning that having another team to chase would be the factor that put the BU squad over the top. ‘We definitely felt that it was inevitable.’

None of the relay runners took part in their normal races on Sunday because they wanted to focus on the 4×400. They definitely reaped the benefits of the sacrifice.

‘It means so much,’ Deppe said after the goal was accomplished in the final indoor meet of his career. ‘I couldn’t envision going out any better than that.’

While it clearly was the highlight of the day, the relay team’s record was not the only accomplishment in a meet in which the Terriers finished 16th out of 50 teams that scored points. Penn State won the meet with 84 points. BU raked in 15 points, eight of which came from junior Jochen Dieckfoss, who grabbed second in the 3000, but failed to qualify for nationals.

Richard Kiplagat of Iona ran away with the race, defeating Dieckfoss by six seconds, but the Terrier junior still managed to hold off the rest of the field for second.

‘We were hoping that he would do a bit better, but second in the IC’s was a good reward for him,’ Schuder said. ‘He just wasn’t able to stay with that guy.’

The distance crew, which has been vital to the team’s success all year, also performed well in this meet. Seniors Rob Wong and Jordan Jones both put together great races on the big stage.

Jones was unable to score points, but took 13th with a personal best of 8:21.5 in the 3000. Wong, a walk-on as a freshman, notched a point in the 5000 by finishing eighth with a time of 14:37.59.

‘[Jones] is a real fighter; I thought he was going to drop out three or four times. [Wong] is so consistent and determined,’ Schuder praised. ‘Those guys deserve a lot of ink as well.’

Still, there was no stealing the spotlight from the relay crew on this day.

‘It’s been a four year project of trying to get that record,’ Schuder said. ‘The addition of [Nacaxe and Zaborowski] to go with Deppe and Brandon was just what we needed. The relay team was a bonus for me it is my favorite event. On the whole, I thought our season went very well.’