Women
The women's team saw many improved performances, even though several of the women were competing in more than two events.
Garnering the only victory of the day for Amherst, Shauneen Garrahan '07 breezed to the finish line with virtually no competition in the 5,000-meter race. Elise Tropiano '09 came in third in the same event. In the 3,000-meter, Heather Wilson '08 led the way for five other Jeffs as she crossed the finish line in sixth place. Fellow sophomore Meg Ray also had an excellent race, breaking 11 minutes for the first time and achieving a new personal record (10:52) en route to an eighth-place finish.
"I had a really exciting [3,000] on Saturday," said Ray. "My running has been steadily improving since the beginning of cross country this year, and it was really satisfying to see that reflected in my personal record (PR) last weekend." In addition to hard work throughout this year, Ray credits a positive mindset heading into the race for her exceptional run, which shaved 36 seconds off her time at this same meet last year.
The Jeffs also met with success in the 800-meter race. Senior co-captain Ginger Polich and first-year Zandra Walton grabbed third and fourth places, respectively, as they finished just 0.03 seconds apart. Ray returned to the track and finished 11th overall, despite being placed in the slowest heat.
Sprinters Maria Millard '08 and Hannah Campbell '07 exemplify the hard work put in by the women at the meet. Millard placed seventh in the 400-meter dash and Campbell captured ninth and seventh places in the 200-meter and 100-meter dashes, respectively, before both of them teamed up with Polich and Walton to produce a strong third- place finish in the 4x400-meter relay.
Campbell also led the 4x100-meter relay squad of rookies Kate Silverman, Kathryn Loomis and Jenny Mancino to a solid fourth-place finish. The lone Amherst woman to compete in any of the jumping events, Mancino, placed seventh in long jump before the relay.
Men
In the two-mile race, a rare event at collegiate track meets, sophomore Mike Harbus and first-year Harrison Lakehomer secured seventh and eighth places, respectively. "Harrison and I both had good races considering the hot conditions," said Harbus. This was the first meet for Harbus this season as he as been worried by a possible stress fracture. Behind Lakehomer and Harbus, Rob Boley '07 and David Schriner '06 had slightly disappointing 13th- and 14th-place finishes, but will look to get back up to normal speed this weekend.
Some of the distance and middle-distance men struggled at the end of their races, despite very solid first halves. However, one of the bright spots in these events for the men was junior Eric Glustrom's performance in the 800. Placing 23rd overall, Glustrom ran a tough race and reaped the rewards for his efforts. "Eric had a real breakthrough race," said Harbus. "He lowered his PR by a lot." Finishing ahead of Glustrom were Basile Beaty '08 and John Babbott '07 in respective 10th and 16th places.
Returning to the 3,000-meter steeplechase, first-year Peter Foote benefited from the better weather conditions as he finished seventh, while classmate Joe Addison competed in the event for the first time and finished in a respectable 10th place.
In the shorter races, Sam Hayman '07 captured ninth in the 400-meter dash, while Jon Ettinger '07 grabbed 12th in the 100-meter dash.
The Jeffs also demonstrated their strength in the throwing events. Nick Canevari '06 earned sixth, seventh and 10th places in the discus, shot put and javelin events, respectively. Stephen Shashy '08 attained a new personal record with his 39.10 meter javelin throw.
As the Jeffs gear up for next weekend's Little Three Championship hosted by Wesleyan University, they will not let up on the effort they have put into their practices and races. If all goes as planned, each Jeff will see their hard practices translate into fast times against the Cardinals and the Williams College Ephs next weekend.
NESCAC Notes
While Williams is favored to win the Little Three and NESCAC Championships, the Jeffs may have a realistic shot at defeating Wesleyan, whom they have yet to compete against this season.