Track and field teams prepare for upcoming competition
The Saint Joseph’s University men’s and women’s track teams were successful over the weekend of April 7. 12 men and three women raced at Princeton University in hopes of time improvements and qualifications. Both squads raced at Rider University on April 8 and came in second place.
The teams bundled up in layers for the Sam Howell Invitational at Princeton. Despite high winds and cold temperatures, both teams ran strongly with high rankings and solid times. The men advanced toward their goals of qualifying for the IC4A championships and the women all placed in the top 10.
Senior Jimmy Daniels placed third in the 10k beating his personal record by 53 seconds. This is his second qualification for the IC4A championships and Daniels reached his goal by breaking 30 minutes.
“I was overcome with joy,” Daniels said. “My family was all there to support me which made it even better.”
Senior Dan Savage, came in fourth place for the 5000 meter. Savage came close to qualifying for the IC4A, but missed it by 2.5 seconds.
“The winds were at their worst for his race,” said Head Coach Mike Glavin. “He would have easily qualified if it weren’t for the wind.”
The unfavorable conditions affected the women as well.
“There’s nothing you can do about it though,” said junior Cassidy Weimer. “Once I got there and experienced the weather, my goal changed to going out and racing the competition.”
Weimer placed sixth for the 1500 meter. Seniors Julia Jenkin and Sarah Regnault both placed in the top 10 ten as well. Head Coach Melody O’Reilly was proud of the girls’ effort and sees these three distance runners scoring well for the A-10 and qualifying for the ECAC.
The meets at Rider University brought more triumphs for the team. The strong winds were still present, but these conditions certainly did not play a major factor. It was a scoring meet, with both men and women winning second place. There were major successes both individually and for the relays for the men and women.
Senior Torey Doaty, sophomore Justin Branco and freshman David Bryant all won their events. Relays in the 100 meter, 400 meter and 800 meter also contributed to the team’s scoring.
“All the younger ones and less experienced ones scored,, Glavin said. “That went very well.”
O’Reilly was extremely proud of the team’s overall performances.
“I would consider it a huge success,” O’Reilly said. “What I like most about what I saw is how everyone was competing and putting themselves out there.”
St. Joe’s was able to gain extra points from throwing and additional field events, but the team as a whole displayed strong efforts in high jump, sprinting and distance.
Junior Claudine Andre won high jump, freshman Caroline Duffy came in first place in the 200 meter and sophmore Nathaniela Bourdeau came in first for the 100 meter. Senior Sarah Regnault, who ran the previous night, raced her first time in the 400 meter with a time of 59:52.
“That was a really big deal,” O’Reilly said. “This will set her up for her 800s in the future.”
O’Reilly hopes for the girls to run well, score for the A-10 and qualify for the ECAC. She would like them to do better at the A-10 than last year.
Both coaches are preparing their teams for the next upcoming invitational − the Penn Relays on April 27.
“We still have work to do to make the season even better, but we’re putting together a great team,” Glavin said.
