After a promising start to the spring outdoor season for the Wesleyan track team at the Jerry Gravel Classic, the Cardinals headed to New London, CT on Saturday, March 31 for the USCGA Invitational, hosted by the Coast Guard Academy. The team results were disappointing for Wesleyan, as the men finished last out of the nine competing teams, while the women fared slightly better by finishing eighth out of 11 squads.
Although the results are indicative of a poor performance, it does not acknowledge the fact that only half of the students who competed for the Cardinals at the Jerry Gravel Classic took part in the competition at Coast Guard Academy. The list of athletes missing in action for the Cards was quite prominent, as the men were without the services of All-American triple jumper and senior co-captain Tommie Lark ’12, as well as perennial contenders Bryan Marsh ’13, Skyler Cummins ’13, Paulie Lowther ’13, Jack Pacelle ’13, and Ernie Wingate ’14. The women were also victims of attrition, missing the talents of distance runners Julia Mark ’13, Hannah Zimmerman ’13, and Alanah Hall ’15. Sprinter Idara Foster ’15 was also withheld from the New London events.
Despite the absence of some of the team’s top athletes, there were several bright spots for the individuals that plied their trades this past weekend for the red and black. On the men’s side, LaDarius Drew ’15 continued the successful start to his outdoor collegiate career by finishing second place in the 400m with a time of 50.53. Drew’s eight points in the event made up the majority of the production on Saturday for the men, who finished with 13 points total. Nayan Ghosh ’15 was the only other male Cardinal to garner points, as his pole vault of 3.56m was good enough for a fourth place finish.
The women, on the other hand, found much more success in New London, as four of the Lady Cards won their respective events. Senior sprinter Julia Frieze added another first-place trophy to her collection: a victory in the 400m dash with a time of 1:00.84. The win marked the fourth career first-place finish for Frieze in the 400m and her first outdoor victory in the event since the Wesleyan Spring Classic last March.
Geneva Jonathan ’15 took home her first career victory in the 400m hurdles with a time of 1:09.78. On top of beating the field, Johnathan bested her twin sister Orelia Jonathan ’15 by two seconds to take the upper hand in the sibling rivalry. Kimora Brock ’15 was the other freshman winner for the Cardinals, placing first in the 800m event with a time of 2:23.03. Brock’s performance thus far has given Wesleyan track fans another hopeful athlete to rely upon, as she has now placed in the top-five of each of her events this season.
In the throwing events, Sierra Livious ’14 won yet another shot put title with a throw of 11.89m. The Louisiana native’s shot put was an outdoor career best, beating her top throw from last year by .04m. Junior co-captain Lia Monti also earned points with a respectable sixth-place finish in the javelin competition with a throw of 27.93m.
With two road meets under their belts to kick off the spring campaign, the men’s and women’s track and field teams will finally be able to enjoy the comforts of home, as Wesleyan is set to host the annual Elmer Swanson Invitational. The event, named for the former long-time track and cross-country coach, takes place at 10 a.m. on Saturday, April 9 at the Andersen Track.