By Jack Pfeifer

Stephen Mozia, the junior from Hackensack, NJ, has qualified in the NCAA shot and discus from Cornell, coming off some big throwing at the East Regional where he had a lifetime best in the disc (206-0) and an outdoor PR in the shot (66-10 ½). The NCAA Championships begin Wednesday at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. Mozia, who now competes internationally for Nigeria, his family’s country of origin, was NCAA runnerup indoors after a disappointing 8^th place at last year’s NCAA outdoor. With his new country, he competed at this winter’s World Indoor in the SP.

Mozia is one of eight qualifiers for the Big Red – four individuals along with the women’s 4x4 – and Cornell joins qualifiers from Buffalo, Syracuse and Monmouth as representing schools from the states of New York and Jersey that are outside the New York City metropolitan area:

Cornell Montez Blair (Timber Creek, Erial, NJ) sr., high jump; Mozia SP/DT; Rachel Sorna (Arlington, Lagrangeville, NY) sr., steeple; Max Hairston (Wissahickon, Pa.) so., high hurdles; women’s 4x4 (Zena Kolliesuah, Elyse Wilkinson, Ebolutalese Airewele, Udeme Akpaete). Sorna has had an excellent senior season. At the Heps she won the steeple, was runnerup in the 3k and 3^rd in the 10. Fourth in the NCAA steeple a year ago, she has improved her PR this spring to 9:43.48, 2^nd nationally.

Buffalo Jonathan Jones (Portville, NY) jr., shot put; Mike Morgan (Ontario NY) so., decathlon. Jones, a surprise 4^th last year in the shot, has a best of 66-4 ¾.

Syracuse Sarah Pagano (IHA, Ringwood, NJ) sr., 10k; Margo Malone (North Hills, Pittsburgh) so., 10k; Freddie Crittenden (Utica, Mich.) fr., high hurdles; Shaina Harrison (Aurora, Ontario) so., 100.

Monmouth McLean Lipschutz (Robbinsville, NJ) so., javelin; Vincent DuVernois (Springfield, Pa.) sr., javelin; Dylan Capwell (Hopatcong, NJ) fr., 800. Capwell, NJ Group champion last year at 1:50.86, has had a splendid freshman year, improving to 1:47.68. He won the MAAC and the IC4A indoors.