Women's track faces top competition over break

Though the first three competitions featured in the women's indoor track and field schedule did not display a full roster, those able to compete put forth a promising start to the season. The Husky Carnival, Holiday Classic, and Dartmouth Invitational only featured a few Jumbos, but many earned postseason berths for their early efforts.

"We were only competing with a half to a third of the squad in each of these meets," coach Kristen Morwick said. "So these first few meets were really for those who wanted to race and were ready to go. It was an opportunity for those who had the facilities to train over break to get in some race experience."

The Dartmouth Invitational offered first class competition from around the NESCAC and beyond. While athletic powerhouse Williams College took fourth overall at the event, the track and field jaugernaut of Wheaton College ran away with the meet, topping the host of the event, Dartmouth, by more than 10 points.

"One downfall of big open meets like that is that there are so many runners not affiliated with a college," senior Kristen Munson said. "It makes the competition that much tougher. But most of us go to Dartmouth to just get another race in, it's a chance to show what people have done over break."

Clearing a mark of 10' 6'', senior tri-captain Myriam Claudio broke her own pole vault record on her way to a 5th place finish. However, the day's events turned bittersweet during the 4x200meter relay, as Claudio ran a leg of the fourth-place relay but ended up getting tripped in the process and sustained a minor ankle injury. Rounding out the speedy relay team was a trio of talented freshmen in Rachel Bloom, Katie Gadkowski, and Amber Woods.

Bloom's time of 7.67 in the 55 meter dash qualified her for ECACs, setting a speedy precedent for this early point in the season. Sophomore Sika Henry also qualified for ECACs, competing in the high jump and clearing a height of 5' 2.25''.

The indoor pentathlon proved a fruitful venture for both Jumbos competing. Junior Jessica Trombly placed fifth overall with 3085 total points, and placed herself in second on the list of the greatest Tufts pentathlon point totals. Fellow competitor sophomore Melissa Graveley qualified for the Div III championships with her pentathlon performance.

The distance squad of junior Lauren Caputo (10:45.45), freshman Becca Ades (10:54.55), and seniors Kristen Munson (10:56.29) and Danielle Perrin (11:06.67) had a strong showing in the 3000, all fresh off the cross country season.

One venue in which many Jumbos competed was the Holiday Classic, which occurred before break on Dec 14th. As a unit, the throwers demonstrated a show of force on home turf. Taking the helm of this evolving throwing squad is coach Rebecca Brooks, a 2000 graduate of Williams and National Champion in the throws.

Sophomore Katie Antle catapulted the shot two feet past her old personal record, breaking 40 feet for the first time. Her mark was enough for third place overall and qualified her for Div I New Englands. Junior Gwen Campbell was one place behind Antle and was equally impressive with her PR of 36' 8''. In the weight throw, the trio of junior tri-captain Jessica Gauthier, sophomore Jessica Colby, and Campbell garnered third through fifth places, respectively.

"(Throwing) is an area where we'll really surprise some teams," Munson said. "Williams has traditionally been strong, but with efforts like Katie putting on two feet that's substantial. And Rebecca is going to be a great help."

In the weekend before the Holiday Classic, the Husky Carnival hosted by Northeastern University played host to some additional remarkable results. Trombly made her way onto another record list in the 500. Her time of 1:16 got her a third place overall finish and also placed her second on the list of fastest 500 times posted by a Jumbo. In the same race, Henry (1:21.47) and sophomore Claudia Clarke (1:21.61) made their way to sixth and eighth on that same Tufts list and in the process qualified for the Div I New England meet.

Not to be outdone, Perrin (10:50.43) and senior Mary Nodine (10:50.85) captured third and fourth in the 3000m run. Their times were good enough to qualify them for ECACs in an event that no Jumbo could qualify for at the Div III level this time last year.

There are still many newcomers to the squad who have yet to set foot on the track in a competitive arena, and this weekend's Quad Meet will provide a ripe opportunity for them to showcase their talent.

"We've got a good young crew, we're going to be a lot better than last year," Morwick said. "There are big gains in sprints, jumps, hurdles, and more flexibility in relays. So far, we see a lot of new people filling in, a good sign for early in the season."