On April 20, Men’s and Women’s Track and Field competed on their home turf at the Silfen Invitational, a meet held annually at Conn. The women placed second out of fourteen teams, while the men placed fifth out of twelve.
The day was mostly cloudy, with some sun poking through on occasion, as if wishing the Camels luck as they competed and aimed to qualify for championship meets such as NESCAC, NE Division III and ECAC Division III.
“This is our last regular season meet, so we’re trying to qualify for as many championships as possible,” Marina Stuart ’16, 200 meter runner, triple jumper and pole-vaulter, said.
Conn’s women’s team placed second in the meet, only twenty points behind Rhode Island College. The Camels qualified individuals for NESCACs in sixteen events. Qualifiers included Sam Pevear ’15, who placed fourth in shot put (35’05.25”), second in discus (109’10”) and fifth hammer (111’11”), as well as qualifying for the NE Division IIIs in shot put and discus. Merry Byrne ’13 also became eligible for NESCACs, NE DIIIs and the ECAC Division III championships in the 3000 meter steeplechase, placing second with a time of 11:58.73.
Both the women’s 4×400 and the women’s 4×800 meter relays won third. The women’s 4×100 relay team won fourth place. Hayley Adnopoz ’16, Hannah Lewis ’16, Marina Stuart ’16 and Alex Cammarata ’14 ran their best time of the season, at 54.26 seconds.
“[Being a senior] is bittersweet. I’m going to miss everyone, but I’m getting too old for this,” Michelle Wesley ’13 joked. Wesley ran 2:24.18 in the 800 meter, placing fifth and qualifying for the NESCAC championships.
Conn’s men’s team placed fifth in the Silfen meet, behind Community College of Rhode Island, Massachusetts Maritime Academy, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and Rhode Island College. The men’s team qualified individuals in fourteen events for NESCACs. Individual qualifiers include Nick Fischetti ’16, who qualified in the 400 meter hurdles with a time of 1:02.18 and Tim Murtagh ’13, who placed first in the 3000 meter steeplechase with a time of 10:08.91. Murtagh also qualified for NE Division III. Mike LeDuc ’14 also qualified by placing second in the 1500 meter run at 3:58.05. LeDuc’s time also qualified him for NESCACs, NE Division III and ECAC Division III.
The men’s 4×800 meter relay team, which placed first, also qualified for the ECAC Division III championships. Matt Boudreau ’13, Andrew Duarte ’13, Ian Rathkey ’14 and Tristan Cole ’13 ran their best time of the season at 7:58.08. The men’s 4×100 meter relay team also ran their best time of the season. Placing fourth, Chris May ’14, Dan Gossels ’16, Fischetti and Rathkey ran a total time of 47.00 seconds.
“I feel like we have a great young team. A lot of freshmen have stepped up to the plate replacing the seniors that left last year,” May said.
Those who have qualified will head to NESCACs on April 27, and then to NE IIIs on May 4, the day of Floralia. If you see them around campus, wish them luck, and thank them for missing out on Chiddy Bang to represent our school.
