SOMERVILLE, MA (Jan. 19, 2008) – Junior Andrew Grange (Methuen, MA) and sophomore Doug Caves (Oxford, MA) qualified for the NCAA Championship – finishing first and second in the 400 meter dash – to lead the UMass Lowell men’s track and field team to second place at the Tufts University Indoor Invitational at the Gantcher Sports and Convocation Center.

UML captured five events and compiled 140 points, placing second only to the host Jumbos, who scored 203 points. Rensselaer (101) placed third and was followed by Keene State (80) and Division I Saint Francis of New York (70).

The River Hawks were without the majority of their distance runners, who instead ran at the Greater Boston Track Club Invitational at Harvard.

Grange won the 400 meter dash in 48.79 seconds while Caves was close behind in 49.07.

Also impressing in the sprints was freshman Johan Rafael (Lawrence, MA) and sophomore Justin Oliver (Lowell, MA), who placed first and second in the 200 meter dash. Rafael posted a time of 23.16 seconds while Oliver finished in 23.34.

Rafael and Oliver also led the UML 4X200 meter relay team to second place with a time of 1:33.15 behind only St. Francis (1:32.51). Rafael ran his split in 22.67 while Oliver anchored in 23.34. Freshmen Sam Bastien (Canton, MA) ran a 23.45 leg and freshman Jeff Brighenti (Westminster, MA) ran a 23.50 split.

UML also impressed in the middle distance events, led by freshmen Sean Gelinas (Northwood, NH) and Chris Forbes (Methuen, MA). Gelinas won the mile in 4:31.29 while junior Jack Kilcommons (South Boston, MA) placed third in 4:34.74.

Forbes captured the 1,000 meters in 2:34.65 while sophomore Mike Malinowski (Peabody, MA) placed sixth in 2:39.56.

Freshman Cory Murray (Methuen, MA), who topped all collegiate throwers in the shot put last week at the Dartmouth Invitational, won the title at Tufts with a throw of 50 feet, 10.75 inches, more than five feet further than second-place Chris Clark of Bridgewater State (45’ 5.25’’). Freshman Peter Burke placed fifth with a distance of 41’ 7.74’’.

Other individual results included that of senior Jeff Destino (Gloucester, MA), who placed third in the 600 meters 1:24.54; freshman Matt Blazon (Lowell, MA) and sophomore Chris Dietsch (Tewksbury, MA), who placed fourth (8.14) and fifth (8.19) in the 55 meter hurdles; and senior Jason Gustin (Wilmington, MA), who took fifth in the 800 meters (2:01.36).

Destino also led the UML 4X40 meter relay team to a second-place showing in 3:30.63. Destino ran a 51.77 split and was joined by junior Robert Fernandez (Mansfield, MA), who ran his leg in 52.77; freshman Brody Griffiths (Woburn, MA) in 52.90 and freshman John Lutkevitch (Mansfield, MA) in 52.77.

UML enters the Boston University Terrier Classic next Saturday.