Before beginning to talk about the eagerly anticipated outdoor season, it is important to bring the indoor season to an official close with a report of Wesleyan success at the NCAA Division III Championships. Wesleyan’s two qualifiers Bryan Marsh ’13 and Alexis Walker ’16 flew out to Chicago along with the coaching staff to compete for All-American status. Marsh came into the cross country event ranked fourth nationally, while Walker had qualified for the long jump on the back of an 18-4 1/2 leap in the New England Division III Championships a week before, the 12th-best mark of the year.
Both athletes came into the event with high hopes of performing at their best against a very talented field. Marsh faced a particularly daunting task—many competitors had enjoyed a few weeks off while he had raced the qualifier just a week before. Marsh ended up coming home in 10th, his second successive All-American finish in that sport. It speaks volumes for Marsh’s talent that this did not meet his lofty expectations.
“It was disappointing because I came in seeded fourth and know I could place well,” Marsh said. “But in the end it just wasn’t my day.”
Walker, experiencing her first taste of NCAA action in her rookie season, admitted to feeling the pressure at the meet.
“Going to NCAAs as a freshman was super nerve-wracking but even more exciting,” Walker recounted.
Fortunately, any butterflies in the stomach brought out the best in her, as she jumped phenomenally to take eight position, All-American status, and a place on the podium.
“Standing on the podium and receiving the trophy was too thrilling,” said Walker. “It was a great experience that I want to do again and will definitely work toward every season.”
Congratulations to both athletes, as they, along with the rest of the team, turn their focus to the outdoor season. The first outdoor meet was scheduled to take place at Westfield State on March 23, but the meet was cancelled due to poor track conditions. As a result, five teams from the meet competed at Connecticut College for a small invitational. This replacement meet did not carry much importance for competing teams, yet it was still a chance to improve and build toward the future.
“Conn wasn’t that important,” said Luca Ameri ’15. “First meet outdoors, crazy wind, not a lot of teams. Generally it was just to get our feet wet, so to speak.”
Though Ameri may have been speaking metaphorically, weather conditions did indeed play a significant part in the proceedings. Extreme cold weather meant many athletes entered into events in which they do not normally compete to avoid injury.
“Might be the toughest beginning to an outdoor season in terms of weather that I’ve seen,” said Michael Onah ’13.
Despite adverse conditions, Wesleyan still put in a number of top drawer performances. Geneva Jonathan ’15 did exceptionally well to take first in the 200m, while both men’s and women’s 4×400 relay teams tasted success.
Looking ahead, Wesleyan will next visit Coast Guard on Saturday, March 30 for its invitational. Though the team faces a slight setback due to construction on their home track, it has a lot working in its favor. Not only is this one of the most talented Wesleyan teams ever, but also injuries are currently few and far between.
What would constitute a great season? There are many factors, but one of the most important surely is getting one over on rivals.
Yuon Flemming ’15 certainly conveyed this sentiment.
“It also goes without saying that we have our eyes set on success at Little Threes later on in the season at Williams College,” Fleming declared. “[We want to] leave Amherst and Williams in the dust!”