Women
The women were led by senior tri-captains Shauneen Garrahan, Hannah Campbell, and Maria Millard, who had six top-three finishes among them. Garrahan, a three-time All-American in the 2006-2007 indoor season, continued her distance dominance, winning the 5,000-meter run and placing third in the 1,500-meter run. Campbell flashed impressive early-season speed in the sprints, coming in second in the 400-meter dash and third in the 200-meter dash. Millard excelled in the 400-meter hurdles, where her time of 64.73 broke the nearly decade-old school record set by Anne Bertkau '99. Equally exciting, though, was her performance in the 4x400-meter relay, where she teamed with Campbell, Carly Levenson '09 and Kate Silverman '09. Receiving the baton for her anchor leg in second place, with a seemingly insurmountable distance between her and the first-place runner from UMass-Lowell, Millard flew past the competition, delivering the Jeffs to victory.
Following the example set by their captains, the Jeffs got notable showings from a host of underclassmen. Katie Moravec '08 and Nicole Anderson '09 ran well in the 10,000-meter run, as they finished second and third, respectively. The 5,000 was also a Jeff-dominated affair, where sophomores Elise Tropiano and Caitlin McDermott-Murphy and first-year Sophie Galleher joined Garrahan in the top five. Levenson and Jenny Mancino '09 had excellent finishes in the 400, placing fourth and fifth, as Mancino won her heat but was just edged by Levenson in the overall standings. The Jeffs also got a well-rounded showing from first-year Jennifer Rybak, who, as a promising young hepathlete, competed in multiple events, highlighted by a sixth-place finish in the long jump.
Men
Like their female counterparts, the men also looked to their upperclassmen to blaze the trail. Senior tri-captain John Babbott out-battled a pack of Wesleyan University runners to take the tape in the 5,000, improving his personal best by several seconds. Junior tri-captain Steve Shashy displayed impressive versatility, running three sprint events- the 200, 400, and 4x400-as well as turning in strong results in the discus and javelin throws. Befitting his captain's role, Shashy led a trio of Jeffs across the line in the 400, as he, first-year Tommy Moore and senior Geoff Stricsek finished within a third of a second of one another. Senior Nate Freese headed a pack of Jeffs into the top eight of the 10,000, a group that included juniors Michael Harbus and Tomas Morrissey, along with Harrison Lakehomer '09 and Daniel Murner '10.
Though upperclassmen paced the Jeffs in distance and sprints, the mid-distance events were highlighted by the races of first-year Kit Callahan. In what was characterized by sophomore teammate Jack Kiley as "a breakout performance," Callahan had a strong race in the 800-meter run and delivered a personal best in the 1,500. Juniors Basile Beaty and Rom Cabeza also ran well while completing the difficult 800-1,500 double; particularly promising were Beaty's eighth place finish in the 800 and Cabeza's 13th place in the 1,500.
All of this success came despite an Amherst strategy that reflected the meet's early-season, non-scoring nature. "We're still building a base, trying to get stronger," said first-year Sophie Galleher. "[We] trained through," added Garrahan, noting that the Jeffs held strenuous practices in the days leading up to the meet rather than tapering their workouts. Additionally, each Jeff runner competed in more events and at longer distances than they usually do, as Head Coach Erik Nedeau smartly kept an eye to the future.
With early season meets such as the Bantam Invite and next week's invitational at Fitchburg State lighting a spark, the Jeffs look to catch fire in the weeks to come.
NESCAC Notes
Traditional powerhouses Williams College and Tufts University look to be strong again on both the men's and women's sides. The Williams women's team won the National Championship indoors, while the Eph men finished fourth. Both squads aim to continue their NESCAC dominance in the coming season.