If you only look at place finishes, you may be unimpressed by the women’s indoor track and field team’s performance last Saturday at the Valentine’s Day Relays at Boston University.
However, after looking a little closer, it becomes obvious that the women performed at a very impressive level. Saturday’s meet included competition not only from Division III, but also from Divisions I and II, in addition to outside competitors from track clubs and some preparatory schools.
The Yellowjackets had two athletes finish in the top-25 in their events, and one of these athletes produced two top-25 finishes.
“I think the meet was a great success,” sophomore Stacie Woods said. “Many of our athletes were able to get a season personal record, as well as qualify for the Eastern College Athletic Association Championships. I am proud of all of the women who went to the meet because I saw each and every one of them give it 110 percent.”
Woods was 18th in the 500-meter run with a time of 1:20.46 and senior Kate Pohlman was 24th with a time of 1:21.99. Pohlman also placed 25th in the 1,000-meter run, clocking in at 3:07.30.
Freshman Alexis Kirk ran the 500 as well, placing 40th with a time of 1:27.08. Freshman Chelsea McGuire also competed in the 1,000 and was 51st, clocking in at 3:18.81. The 4×400-meter relay team finished 31st with a time of 4:11.21.
In the shorter distances, sophomore Michelle Andrews placed 34th in the 55-meter hurdles with a time of 9.11 seconds. Freshman Jamie Landry also competed in the 55-meter hurdles and placed 59th with a time of 9.92. It is this short difference in time and large difference in placement that illustrates how strong the competition truly was.
“It’s a really exciting atmosphere at BU since there are tons of Division I athletes that run unbelievably fast – for example, there were women running 4:20 for the mile,” senior Jessica Van Binsbergen said.
Van Binsbergen competed in the 5,000-meter run and she finished 28th overall with a time of 18:21.62.
“Personally, I ran a season’s best, which places me third on the state list, but unfortunately I was seated in a slow heat and ended up leading the race,” Van Binsbergen said. “I feel if I had been in a faster heat, I would have benefited a little more from the amazing competition that was at BU and run an even faster time.”
Woods was awestruck by the atmosphere at such a large meet.
“It becomes an entirely different mind-set upon arriving at the Valentine meet,” Woods said. “So much energy is generated by traveling so far, as well as the company of such amazing athletes. There is so much talent laid out on the track, you can’t help but feel honored to be a part of it. It really forces you to grit your teeth and put your best out on the line.”
The season is drawing to an end and this meet boosted the team’s confidence and morale. “All of us left BU feeling more confident in our abilities at this point in the season,” Van Binsbergen said. “[We’re] really excited for the state championship meet at Rochester Institute of Technology in two weeks.”
Philbrick can be reached at ephilbrick@campustimes.org.
