Track & Field Takes Second at Westfield Invitational
WESTFIELD, Mass. (March 31, 2007) - The Outdoor Track and Field team had a stellar start to their spring season. The Lyons registered seven first place finishes at the Westfield State Invitational, placing in second overall behind the host College. MHC finished ahead of American International College and Mass. Maritime.
The Lyons throwing squad recorded a number of exceptional performances. Senior Gretchen Sminkey threw for first place in both the Discus (33.75m) and the Hammer (38.26m). In both events, a Mount Holyoke thrower finished just behind Sminkey. In the Discus, junior Devin Waldman registered a 28.95m throw for second place. Sophomore Chelsea McCracken took second in the Hammer Throw (33.45m). McCracken also earned second place in the Shot Put (9.70) finishing narrowly behind a thrower from Colby-Sawyer. Three other MHC throwers finished in the top six for the Shot Put event. In the Javelin, senior Shannon Graham threw 27.66m for a third place finish.
In the sprinting events, junior Grace Zeilger raced to first place in the 100 meter dash (13.20s). Zeigler edged out a runner from Westfield State by a tenth of a second. She also took home a second place finish in the 200 meter dash, crossing the finish line at 28.10. First year Ebony Williams began her rookie Outdoor Track season with a win in the 400 meter dash. Williams finished with a time of 1:03.86. Sophomore Kiri-lin McGregor earned a respectable second place in the 800 meter run (2:36.60). In the 10,000 meter run, the Lyons swept the top four places. Meghan Lynch finished in first with a time of 42:15.37.
Senior Malai Tananone picked up another win for the Lyons, registering a time of 1.10.00 in the 400 meter hurdles. Zeigler rounded-out her strong performance at Westfield State with a first place finish in the long jump. Ziegler reached a mark of 5:08m.
Based on their impressive performances today, six MHC track athletes qualified for the Division III meet to be held at Springfield College on May 4th and 5th: Meghan Lynch (10k), Katherine Conroy (10k), Joan Meiners (10k), Christine Klepacki (10k), Gretchen Sminkey (Discus), and Grace Zeigler (100m/long jump). Zeigler also qualified for the ECAC Championships with her mark in the Long Jump.
The Lyons will next travel to New London, Conn. on Saturday, April 7th to compete in the Coast Guard Invitational.