Wheaton tracksters capture a combined six event titles at Solomon Husky Invitational

April 17, 2004

DEDHAM, MA- The Wheaton College men's and women's outdoor track and field teams captured a combined six event championships Saturday afternoon at Northeastern University's Solomon Husky Invitational, leading the Lyons to multiple NCAA Division III national meet qualifying standards in the non-scoring meet.

The women posted four event titles, led by senior Amber James (Woodbury, MN/Woodbury) and junior Kirsten Larsen (Hampden, MA/Minnechaug Regional). James registered an automatic qualifying standard in the 400-meter dash with a time of 55.39, which was over three seconds faster than teammate Jessica Allegra (East Hampton, CT/East Hampton). Larsen, who reached a provisional qualifying distance in the javelin throw with a toss of 129' 11", placed third in the javelin and first in the discus throw with a toss of 123' 10".

James also anchored Wheaton's two provisional-qualifying relay races, joining Allegra, sophomore Oly Wirtz (Fitchburg, MA/Fitchburg) and freshman Alison Amendola (Franklin, MA/Franklin) for the top finish in the 4x400-meter relay and runner-up mark in the 4x100-meter relay. The Lyons' 4x400M bettered Northeastern by more than a four-second margin in 3:55.43, while the 4x100M was 70-hundredths of a second off Northeastern's finish with a time of 47.75.

Sophomore Kendra Leith (Holden, MA/Wachusett Regional) captured Wheaton's fourth event championship in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 18:36.43. Other strong track performances included Allegra taking second in the 400-meter dash in 58.92, Amendola third in the 200-meter dash in 25.61 and freshman Jennifer Harlow (East Bridgewater, MA/East Bridgewater) placing second in the 100-meter hurdles in 15.47 and sixth in the 100-meter dash in 12.98.

Senior Kim Spence (Barrington, NH/Dover) was second in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a provisional qualifying time of 11:15.24, while junior Erin O'Brien (North Easton, MA/Oliver Ames) finished sixth in the 800M run in 2:24.66 and 10th in the 1,500M run in 5:03.17. Sophomore Christina Langevin (Wilbraham, MA/Minnechaug Regional) and junior Emily Doenges (Milford, CT/St. Joseph's) were sixth and eighth, respectively in the 5,000M event.

In the high jump, first-year Crystal Blamy (Walpole, NH/Fall Mountain View), Harlow and junior Kathrine Wallace (Glenmoore, PA/The Hill School) placed three, four and five, respectively with leaps of 5' 3 3/4", with Wallace placing fourth in the triple jump with a distance of 34' 7. Freshmen Stephanie Cummings (Princeton, MA/Worcester Academy) and Hailey Gallant (Ashford, CT/E.O. Smith) were tied for eighth and ninth, respectively in the pole vault, while classmate Katelyn Teixeira (Seekonk, MA/Seekonk) finished third in the javelin at 120' 10".

Senior Erik Benson (Southbury, CT/Pomperaug) led the men with top two finishes in the 200- and 400-meter dashes, including capturing the 200M title in 21.94 while placing second in the 400M event with a provisional qualifying mark of 47.73. Junior Dan Olson (Voorheesville, NY/Albany Academy) was Wheaton's second male athlete victorious in an event, as he once again bested the field in the high jump with an automatic qualifying height of 7' 1/4". In addition to the Lyons' pair of event wins, Wheaton had several solid performances on the afternoon.

Sophomore Ajay Sisodia (Andover, MA/Andover) took second in the 100M in 10.98, senior Tyrone McClain (New Haven, CT/Hillhouse) fourth in the 200M in 22.79, senior Terry Panetta (Hicksville, NY/St. Anthony's) third in the 1,500M run in 4:01.05 and sixth in the 800M run in 1:58.60, sophomore Eric Richardson (Walpole, MA/Bishop Feehan) seventh in the 5,000M run in 16:34.87 and junior Patrick Freytag (Pittsford, NY/McQuaid Jesuit) eighth in the 400M hurdles in 57.89.

On the field, freshman Ryan Fitzgerald (Newport, RI/Rogers) was third in the shot put and fourth in the discus, while junior Chris Wilbur (Weymouth, MA/Weymouth) took sixth in the javelin. McClain tied for seventh in the long jump and freshman Thomas Simmons (New Bedford, MA/New Bedford) was eighth in the pole vault.

Complete Results

Last updated on 4/19/04.
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