Harper defends track title
Harper sophomore Pablo Ramirez (Conant) won his second individual event of the NJCAA Divisoin III championships in Alfred, N.Y., on Saturday to help the Hawks resoundingly defend their men’s track and field national title.
Ramirez, who won the 10,000-meter run Thursday, easily won the 5,000 in 15:04.42, almost one-half minute faster than the runner-up. Harper also got point-scoring results in the 5,000 from sophomores Ryan Wojdyla (Palatine, fourth in 16:10) and Steve Heer (Rolling Meadows, sixth in 16:26).
Harper had more champions: Troy Cunningham in the 800 (1:54.18) and Robert Douglas in the 110 hurdles (15.01). Chris Spudic (Prospect) placed third in the 1,500 (4:04.91).
The Hawks men amassed 132 points, well ahead of second-place Alfred State (93).
In women’s action Saturday, Harper’s top finishes came from Jazmin Calep, who was second in the 100 dash and fourth in the 200.
Baseball
A pair of baseball victories Saturday has Harper on the verge of winning the Region IV sectional it is hosting.
The Hawks defeated Milwaukee Area Technical College 7-1 in their noon opener behind a strong outing from starter Scott Plaza (Prospect), who pitched a complete game and had a shutout into the ninth inning. Brett Skiena had the key hit for the Hawks, a bases-clearing triple in the sixth inning.
Harper then handled College of DuPage 11-3, eliminating the Chaparrals in the sectional’s double-elimination format. Josh Daniels (Elk Grove) got the win; Nick Spagnola had an RBI groundout in the third inning to tie it at 1-1, and the Hawks took command with a 5-run fifth.
Harper is scheduled to meet Milwaukee at noon Sunday. Another game would be played at 3 p.m. only if Milwaukee wins the first game.