Connecticut College Men’s Track and Field team has already finished the first half of their 2015 season with some solid results, and is looking forward to finishing the second half of the season with an even stronger showing. In the most recent weeks, the men traveled to Wesleyan University Invitational to compete with schools like Wesleyan University, Assumption College, Emmanuel College, Salve Regina University and others. Some of their best results at this meet included the following events: the 4×400 meter relay in which Aidan Cort, Nick Fischetti, Brent Lo, and Rich-Fiondella finished in third with a time of 3:40.69; the 3000 meter run in which Billy Barnes finished in fourth with a time of 9:20.39; the pole vault in which Fischetti finished in sixth at an apex of 10 feet, eight inches; the 1500 meter run in which Joyce finished in eight with a time of 4:22.14; and the 60 meter hurdles in which Cort finished in eighth with a time of 9.50 seconds.
The season is far from over, the men have some important, exciting events to train for in the upcoming weeks. In April, the team will compete at the Amherst College Invitational, the Silfen Invitational, the MIT Invitational, the NESCAC Championship, and at the New England Division III Championship. In May, they will compete at the NEICAAA Championships and at the ECAC Division III Championship.
I recently had the opportunity to sit down with the three graduating seniors, Patrick Dermody, William Barnes and Michael Joyce to talk a bit about their perspectives as seniors running in their final season as Connecticut College athletes.
When I talked to Dermody, he explained to me that his mentality has changed somewhat since when he was a freshman on the team. Dermody said, “I have been worried less about stressing over specific races or workouts, and focused more on working hard while running, and enjoying the competition with the other runners.” Barnes also explained how this season feels just a little bit different than the previous ones. He clarified that his personal goals have remained the same, do well in the 800-meter and contribute in relays, but this season, he has developed a new sense of how important reaching those goals really is. Barnes’ mentality is, “this is the last time I’ll ever get the chance to do it (reach his goals)” so he’s going to give it his all. Joyce revealed he has a similar outlook on his final season, that this is his last chance to accomplish his goals.
All three revealed how much they are looking forward to the Silfen Invitational on April 10th and 11th, which will be their final chance to compete on their home turf. Dermody, Barnes, and Joyce are all excited to compete in front of their friends and family members that are coming to watch the meet. Dermody and Joyce both expressed that they are looking forward to competing in and seeing how successful they can be, individually and as a team, at the NESCAC Championship and at the New England Division III Championship in April and May. Barnes said he is simply “looking forward to the later meets when the weather gets better.” All three seniors clearly seemed proud of their team and the beginning of their season, with high hopes for their potential success at the end of the season. Each acknowledged that these next few weeks are their “final chance”, so they hope to do well and to have a good end of the season. •
