The Wesleyan track team played the role of hosts for the second time in three weeks as longtime rivals Amherst and Williams descended upon Middletown for the annual Little Three Meet on Saturday, April 21. Williams continued its streak of dominance in the historic competition by coming out on top once again in both the men’s (24 years in a row) and women’s (27 years in a row) divisions.
Wesleyan track fans still had plenty to cheer for this past weekend, as the women’s team nabbed second place for the first time since 2003 while boasting a pair of record-breaking performances. The men’s team finished a disappointing third for the third year in a row, despite finishing first in five events.
With her shot put of 12.14m, Sierra Livious ’14 cemented her place in the Wesleyan record book as she broke the 28-year old mark formerly held by Christine Lotze ’86. Although Livious’ shot put topped the Wesleyan record by 0.12m, it was only good enough for a second-place finish, since her mark fell short of first by .38m. Nevertheless, the sophomore standout triumphed in the javelin with her throw of 20.71m.
The 4×400 relay team of Julia Frieze ’12, Heidi Hirvonen ’15, Geneva Jonathan ’15, and Kimora Brock ’15 also joined the Wesleyan record book on Saturday. Their second-place time of 4:01.06 was good enough to break the 10-year-old standard by 0.8 seconds.
Idara Foster ’15 and Hannah Zimmerman ’13 were the only other female athletes to attain wins for the Cardinals. Foster won the 100m dash for the second time in her budding outdoor collegiate career, clocking a blazing time of 12.85. Zimmerman won the 5000m run quite handily with her mark of 18:21.90. Zimmerman topped the next-best competitor by forty-four seconds to win her second event of the season. The women’s team also had encouraging performances from Leyna Donaldson ’15 (100m hurdles), Orelia Jonathan ’15 (100m hurdles and discus), and Julia Mark ’13 (1500m run), all of whom placed in the top three of their respective events.
On the men’s side, LaDarius Drew ’15 and Tommie Lark ’12 led the way once again for the Cardinals. The duo combined for four of the five victories achieved by the men, with each taking home wins in a pair of events. Drew posted career-best times as he captured the 100m and 200m sprint events with times of 11.06 and 22.03. His 200m time bested his own Wesleyan indoor record time by 0.05 seconds; however, he fell short of the school’s outdoor record by 0.10 seconds. It is almost certain that Drew will hold this record by the end of his collegiate career.
Lark celebrated his third career Little Three win in the triple jump event and his first ever win in the long jump. Lark leapt past his competition with ease in both events by logging jumps of 14.10m (triple jump) and 6.84m (long jump). His triple jump outclassed his closest foe by an astounding four feet. The other win by the men’s team came from distance stalwart Skyler Cummins ’13 in the 1500m run with a time of 3:59.61. The victory marked the second year in a row that Cummins has won at the Little Three Meet after his triumph in the 5000m run in 2011.
The Wesleyan track team will now head back on the road for the duration of the spring outdoor campaign, beginning with a trip to Bates College this weekend for the annual NESCAC Championship.