Personal bests are something that all runners strive for, and the women’s track and field team has become quite good at achieving this goal again and again. This past weekend, the Yellowjackets traveled to meets at Syracuse University and the Rochester Institute of Technology, where they performed well and gained personal bests in many events.
Perhaps the most remarkable personal best of the weekend was that of sophomore Kathryn Knowles, who jumped 9.94 meters in the triple jump – her best distance this year by almost half of a meter.
“Everyone on the team performed really well in both meets this weekend,” freshman Sara Myers said.
In other field events, freshman Elaina Stover performed a personal best of 3.05 meters on the pole vault, launching her to a win in that event. Sophomore Anjuli Cherukuri placed third vaulting 2.75 meters.
Also, senior Cynthia Gurecki had a personal best in the weight throw, placing fourth in the event with a distance of 14.47 meters. She also placed fourth in the shot put, throwing 10.76 meters. Junior Kate Odian was fifth in the weight throw.
The relay teams had a good weekend as well. The 4×200-meter relay team was second with a time of 1:53.78, a season best, and was beat out at the tape by only one hundredth of a second. The 4×400-meter relay team won their race with a time of 4:35.68, and the 4×800-meter team placed third with a time of 10:58.41.
“The 4×400 relays performed well at both meets, and the girls at the relays in Syracuse all had really good times,” Myers said.
Junior Whitney Silkworth won the 800-meter run in 2:35.60, and among the other running performers, Myers was 11th in the 400 with a time of 67.96.
As the championship meets draw nearer and nearer, the women are anxious to continue improving so that they can qualify for these meets.
“We’re looking forward to states, which are coming up in a couple of weeks,” Myers said. “We’re trying to get as many people as possible to get times to qualify for championships.”
This coming weekend, the team will be splitting once again. Some will travel to Boston University for the Boston University Relays, while some will take the trip to Ithaca to participate in the Cornell University Invitational.
Philbrick can be reached at ephilbrick@campustimes.org
