Spring Break
INDOOR TRACK: Sax rebounds, but men's team falters
by Melissa Siegel
Staff writer
Sports | 2/5/08
Posted online at 4:25 AM EST on 2/5/08
/ Last updated at 11:49 AM EST on 2/5/08
Despite having another strong season, Ali Sax '09 was not happy with her performance at the Terrier Classic Jan. 26, where she leaped a season-low 4.59 meters in the long jump event. She did not exactly bounce back in kind at last Saturday's Tufts Invitational, but she did rebound with a season-best performance in the triple jump, her other marquee event.
"It felt great," Sax said. "I was really happy to be back up where I should be."
Sax's first-place leap of 10.96 meters highlighted a sixth-place finish out of 14 squads for the women's track team. The men's team, however, finished last out of 11 teams despite good performances in the one-mile and 1,000-meter runs.
Besides Sax, the women's team got one other first-place finish. The foursome of Michelle Gellman '11, Meaghan Casey '09, Marie Lemay '11 and captain Olivia Alford '08 took the 4-by-400-yard relay in 4 minutes, 4.26 seconds. The team trailed the Amherst College foursome after the first three runners finished, but Alford chased down Amherst's last runner halfway through the final 400-yard segment and held on for the duration of the race.
"It's really motivating having someone running in front of you so you can catch them," Alford said. "I tried my hardest, and everyone was cheering. I could hear my teammates cheering from the sidelines, so that definitely helped."
It was a big victory for a foursome that some are touting as one that will compete deep into the indoor track season.
"They ran extremely well," co-head coach Mark Reytblat said. "We're not that far away from then qualifying for [the NCAA Championships]."
Alford then sustained her momentum with a third-place finish in the 200-meter event in 26.84 seconds, and Gellman continued her solid rookie season with a seventh-place finish in the event with a time of 27.25 seconds.
Four Judges also finished among the top nine in the 800-meter run, led by Lemay, who finished third with a personal-best time of 2:23.44. Beth Pisarik '10 and Jess Girard '10 placed fifth and sixth in 2:25.21 and 2:25.26, respectively, and Emily Owen '11 rounded out the team's performance by finishing ninth in 2:27.73.
"It felt great," Sax said. "I was really happy to be back up where I should be."
Sax's first-place leap of 10.96 meters highlighted a sixth-place finish out of 14 squads for the women's track team. The men's team, however, finished last out of 11 teams despite good performances in the one-mile and 1,000-meter runs.
Besides Sax, the women's team got one other first-place finish. The foursome of Michelle Gellman '11, Meaghan Casey '09, Marie Lemay '11 and captain Olivia Alford '08 took the 4-by-400-yard relay in 4 minutes, 4.26 seconds. The team trailed the Amherst College foursome after the first three runners finished, but Alford chased down Amherst's last runner halfway through the final 400-yard segment and held on for the duration of the race.
"It's really motivating having someone running in front of you so you can catch them," Alford said. "I tried my hardest, and everyone was cheering. I could hear my teammates cheering from the sidelines, so that definitely helped."
It was a big victory for a foursome that some are touting as one that will compete deep into the indoor track season.
"They ran extremely well," co-head coach Mark Reytblat said. "We're not that far away from then qualifying for [the NCAA Championships]."
Alford then sustained her momentum with a third-place finish in the 200-meter event in 26.84 seconds, and Gellman continued her solid rookie season with a seventh-place finish in the event with a time of 27.25 seconds.
Four Judges also finished among the top nine in the 800-meter run, led by Lemay, who finished third with a personal-best time of 2:23.44. Beth Pisarik '10 and Jess Girard '10 placed fifth and sixth in 2:25.21 and 2:25.26, respectively, and Emily Owen '11 rounded out the team's performance by finishing ninth in 2:27.73.
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