In a meet used to gauge where athletes stand at the start of the season, the women's track and field team came out of the starting blocks with a bang. Making their presence known to a slew of Div. I teams at last weekend's Husky Carnival, the jumbos posted results that bode well for the remainder of the indoor season. Of the 23 Jumbos who comprised the team at Northeastern, an unprecedented 12 qualified for the postseason.
Sophomore Emily Bersin took fourth in the 500 meter, posting a personal best (1:21.79) and qualifying for New England's. Qualifying for New England's, especially this early in the season was a great feat. "Of the quality performances put out at the meet, hers was the best." coach Kristen Morwick said.
"The meet gave our coaches a great indication of where people are, and a lot performed better than they expected," senior co-captain Lauren Esposito said. "If people started out [this well] at this point, it can only get better."
The team benefited not only from the experience of returning members, but also from a talented pool of freshmen, who contributed in a wide array of events. In the sprints, Sika Henry pulled out a 16th-place finish (28.20) in the 200, while the tandem of Claudia Clarke and Ayako Sawanobari captured ninth (1:04.32) and 10th (1:05.08) in the 400. The middle and long distance events were represented well by Meghan McCarthy, who placed 6th (1:23.79) in the 500, and Katie Sheedy, who took 4th (3:11.97) in the 1,000.
The throwers also had a breakthrough day, as performances by Katie Antle and Jessica Colby garnered seventh and 17th places in the shot put and 18th and 16th places in the weight throw, respectively.
For their first collegiate meet, this group of freshman faired extremely well. "Initially it was very intimidating. There were a lot of teams and I didn't know we were running against Division I schools," Henry said. "But then everyone was so confident that it made me confident and I was ready to race."
Junior co-captain Myriam Claudio led the way amongst the returning runners who showcased great strides early on. Claudio came in eighth (27.26) in the 200, and tied for 15th (9'00.00") in the pole vault, tying her own team pole vault record in the process. Sophomore Sushanna Mignott also had a banner day as evidenced by her fourth place finish in the competitive 55-meter dash (7.73) and fifth place tie (34'00.00) in the triple jump.
Under the guidance of a new coach this season, the throwers demonstrated amazing results and showed great promise for the season ahead. Coach Karen Hoch provides vast experience in every event offered. This expertise paid off in the throwing event known as the weight throw, an event Jumbos had not previously entered because no one could teach the technique.
The weight throw is similar to the hammer throw in track and field, but the weight is heavier. Instead of the traditional 8.8-pound ball attached to a chain used in the hammer throw, the ball is 20 pounds. At her first attempt at the event, sophomore Jessica Gauthier placed 11th place (35'01.00) in the weight throw event, while also capturing a 12th place finish (32'08.50) in the shot put.
"We went into the weight throw event not really expecting much, and we all really surprised ourselves," sophomore Gwen Campbell said. "A coach from another team even came up and congratulated us on our intensity."
Campbell also had a solid day at the throws, taking 16th place in the shot put and 22nd in the weight throw. The most encouraging part of the meet for the throwers was that every thrower had a personal best in their events, and impressive accomplishment early in the season.
"We've been putting in a lot of time in the weight room and at practice." Campbell said. "We've been training since September and the fact that it's paying off, especially so early on, is very exciting and promising."
The Tufts Holiday Classic, which starts this Saturday at 11 a.m., will provide another measuring stick for the Jumbos, as rivals Williams and Amherst try their luck at the Gantcher Center. Wellesley, Smith, and Mount Holyoke will also provide some healthy competition as the Jumbos look to take advantage of the home track.
"We're just going to try spreading people around in different events. We have a lot of rookies, a lot of freshman, and they should do really well on their home track. It'll be exciting to see what the team can do this week." Morwick said.
