Women's track's run at 10th straight conference championship falls short as Wheaton teams combine for 14 all-league honors

April 28, 2007

NEW LONDON, CT- The Wheaton College women's outdoor track and field team's run at a 10th consecutive league crown fell short Saturday afternoon at the United States Coast Guard Academy, as the Lyons came in second to Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) at the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Championship with 178.5 points. Wheaton's men placed fifth with 32 points, as MIT squads captured both league titles today.

Having won all eight NEWMAC crowns entering today, the Lyon women turned in an impressive 12 all-conference performances, including seven top finishes and five runner-up marks. Senior All-American Jennifer Harlow (East Bridgewater, MA/East Bridgewater) and freshman Renee Thompson (Hartford, CT/Weaver) earned four all-conference accolades apiece.

Harlow finished first in the high jump and 4x100-meter relay and second in the 100-meter hurdles and long jump. Harlow jumped an NCAA national meet provisional mark of 5' 5" in the high jump while running a leg on the 4x100M relay team that finished in 48.96, falling 0.16 seconds shy of a provisional standard. Harlow went 15.31 in the 100M hurdles and 17' 5 1/4" in the long jump. Thompson won the 400M dash in 57.87, which was 0.27 seconds off a provisional mark, while running legs on the victorious 4x100M and 4x400M relay teams. She also finished second in the 200M dash.

Joining Harlow and Thompson on the 4x100M relay quartet were sophomores Chizoba Ezeigwe (Brockton, MA/Thayer Academy) and Samira Sanders (Brooklyn, NY/Boys and Girls). For the 4x400M relay foursome that finished in 3:56.35 and was a mere 0.35 ticks short of a provisional time, Thompson sided with sophomores Celeste Karpow (Wilton, CT/Wilton) and Christine Moreau (Lincoln, RI/Lincoln) and freshman Kelly Libert (New Haven, CT/James Hillhouse).

Ezeigwe was a three-time all-conference winner after earning triumphs in the 100- and 200-meter dashes. Ezeigwe's time of 12.35 in the 100M preliminaries fell just 0.03 ticks shy of a provisional qualifying mark. She posted times of 12.41 in the 100M finals and 25.09 in the 200-meter dash, the latter surpassing a provisional time. Sophomore Lily Calderwood (Harvard, MA/Bromfield School) won the 800M run, classmate Natana Jules (Brooklyn, NY/Boys and Girls) placed second in the 400M dash, and sophomore Danica Peterson (Westwood, MA/Westwood) took second in the high jump.

For the men, freshmen Merzudin Ibric (Revere, MA/Phillips Academy) and Howard Powell (Brooklyn, NY/Boys and Girls) captured the 400-meter dash and 110-meter hurdles event titles, respectively. Ibric recorded a time of 49.09, while Powell finished in 15.25. Sophomore Albi Skenderi (Glendale, NY/Grover Cleveland) placed fifth in the 110M hurdles and sixth in the 400M hurdles, while classmate Jonathan Cunha (Lexington, MA/Lexington) was fifth in the 400M hurdles.

The Wheaton teams return to competition next Saturday at the University of Delaware Invitational.

Complete Results

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