Yet another gorgeous day blessed the track and field team as it journeyed to Amherst, Mass. on Saturday, April 19 for the Annual Little Three meet. The Cardinals had resounding triumphs and close defeats, but ultimately both squads fought hard and worked for their wins.
When the dust settled, the men placed third with 82 team points behind Amherst (128) and Williams (159), while the women accumulated 119 points to finish second. This marks the third year in which the ladies have outscored Amherst (100), despite ending up behind Williams (150).
“The team has continued to improve in the past few meets, so I’m excited to see everyone compete,” said Sydney Cogswell ’16. “This is what we spend both of our seasons working toward.”
Cogswell was one of three first-place finishers for the women, winning the 400m dash in 59.11 seconds, even though the race was a departure from her comfort zone.
“The 400m isn’t exactly my race, so I’m really happy with how that went,” Cogswell added. “That was a new [personal record] in the 400m, and it was good practice for next week’s 4×400 and for going out faster in the 800m.”
Joining Cogswell at the top was Captain Sierra Livious ’14, who won the 100m hurdles (15.72 seconds) in addition to second-place finishes in both the shot put and hammer throw.
“I am very happy with yesterday’s performance,” Livious remarked. “The shot put is coming along slowly but gradually, and so is the hammer. The hurdles time wasn’t a [personal record], but it was a race that I fought for.”
Once again, Livious was able to break the Wesleyan record that she herself had set in the hammer throw a week earlier; this time, by nearly 10 feet.
“The hammer was actually a huge [personal record], so I’m excited to see where that will take us,” Livious said. “We are getting in that ‘ready to fight’ mentality, which we’re going to have to do in order to compete well.”
The women had one more first-place winner in Aidan Bardos ’17, clocking a time of 2:19.49 in the 800m. The runners-up included Geneva Jonathan ’15 in the 400m hurdles (1:06.83), Kiley Kennedy ’16 in the pole vault (2.75m), Libby Lazare ’14 in the 1500m (4:53.87), and Ellie Martin ’16 in the javelin (27.97m). These second-place efforts rounded out was yet another solid day for the Cardinal women.
“[We] did well, with wins and good performances in a few different events, so I think everyone is confident going into NESCACs,” Cogswell said. “I’m really looking forward to the 800m [next week] and racing a few girls who have run either the same time or faster.”
On the flip side, the men’s team saw LaDarius Drew ’15 continue his reign of supremacy. Even with increased pressure to maintain his performance level, Drew took the Little Three sprinter crown with 100m (10.99 seconds) and 200m (21.92 seconds) dash wins.
“It feels awesome to know that I’m the best at my main events,” Drew said. “I’ve worked hard, and I don’t plan on stopping the work I’ve put in over the course of the season.”
His first-place times, in conjunction with a second-place long jump, are encouraging signs moving forward towards the NESCAC championships.
“I’m hyped as ever [for NESCACs] because it’s always great competition,” Drew said. “I’m happy to be among the top competitors in the conference.”
Throwers across New England are also taking note of Agbon Edomwonyi ’16, who was top dog in the discus (42.00m) and hammer (41.34m), in addition to a shot-put mark (12.78m) good for second place. Erik Hall ’16 also gave the men a fourth champion in the javelin throw.
“Saturday saw some very nice throws and performances, minus the shot put for me,” Edomwonyi said. “I feel like I know what to work on the most heading into NESCACs, and look forward to a competitive performance.”
As the Cardinals reach their season’s denouement, the NESCAC Championships at Colby loom large on the horizon. Both squads know what is at stake and are preparing to compete with a sense of purpose on the 26th.
“NESCAC is what we’ve been training for all year,” Livious said. “So this is where we leave it all on the track.”