Track fares well out west

Author: Zamir Ahmed

The Middlebury track team kicked off their outdoor season last week, spending their Spring Break in the sun of southern California. While out west, the Panthers took part in two meets against unfamiliar competition, giving Middlebury a chance to prove themselves against larger and tougher teams than they are used to.

On March 19, the Panthers competed in the Aztec Invitational at San Diego State University, the team's first meet of the year. Although the Invitational was a non-scoring meet, several impressive performances were put up by the Panthers.

The women's top finish was turned in by Mary Frederickson '07 in the javelin, who took third with a throw of 36.66m. First-year Ceara Danaher also had a good meet, finishing seventh in the 3000m with a time of 10:46.33 while Captain Melissa Thacker '05 took eighth in the 400m hurdles. Thacker also teamed up with Beth Butler '07, Alice Flanders '07 and Captain Alli Williams '05 to finish seventh in the 4x400m relay.

On the men's side, Jimmy Butcher '08 had the Panthers' best performance, running the 5000m in 15:19.4 to finish third. Will McDonough '07 and Steve Atkinson '06 added a couple of fourth-place finishes, in the 500m and the javelin, respectively. All-American Kevin Bright '06 also started his season on the right foot, finishing fifth in the 400m in 53.84 seconds.

Captain Nick Digani '06 was pleased with the Panthers' performance. "We have a great team - the most talented team we have had since I have been here," said Digani. "Butcher ran great and McDonough really found a race he can do well in. They are going to be a big help come NESCACs."

On March 25-26, the Panthers competed in the Collegiate Open at the University of California-San Diego. The men tallied 68 points, good enough for third place out of 18 teams behind UCSD (135.5 points) and MIT (90.5), while the women finished eighth out of 16 with 37 points. The UCSD women's squad won the meet with 222 points.

The most impressive performance of the trip to California was turned in by Butcher, who took third in the 10000m by breaking a 1991 school record with a time 31:57.46. Khristoph Becker '06 also shined for the Panthers, taking first in the javelin. Becker showed his versatility by tying for third in the high jump and teaming up with Bright, Matt Malek '06 and Patrick Swan '08 to finish second in the 4x400m relay.

The women's team was led by Frederickson, who again posted the Panthers' best finish with a second in the javelin, and Whitney Creed '06, who took third in the hammer throw. Adding fourth-place finishes for the team were Kate Hirschboeck '08 in the long jump and Danaher in the 3000m steeplechase.

The Panthers will look to use the Spring Break trip as a stepping stone to improving their performances and preparing themselves for the end of the year championship meets. The Panthers will next compete on April 2, hosting their home meet at Dragone Track and Field Complex starting at 9 a.m.

"It is nice to run at home," said Digani. "It is the only chance we have to compete in front of the Middlebury community. You want to represent you and your team well in front of your friends."