Track and Field: Squads make another statement on the raceway
The Brandeis indoor track and field team is on a roll after another strong showing last weekend. Several Judges finished ahead of the pack of collegians at the non-scoring Greater Boston Track Club Invitational at Harvard University.
For the men's squad, Chris Brown '12 finished third in the men's Bill Squires Open Mile with a time of four minutes, 8.45 seconds.
Brown's time is the second fastest in Division III and also best in the University Athletic Association this season. He was over three seconds faster than his main opponent from Division I Providence College.
Taylor Dundas '12 took first place in his event with a time of 4:18.73, good for the 15th-fastest time in Division III.
Brown was very pleased with the results of the conference meet, stating it was a good confidence builder.
"It's still pretty early in the season," he said. "No one is racing at their best, but we are making strides toward being the best we could be. However, we are looking pretty good for our conference meet coming up [in the next few months]."
Jumper Jeffrey Maser '15 also indicated the positive results from the invitational stemmed from the players' commitment to the team as well as from experienced coaching.
"This season, we've been working really hard as a team, and that clearly shows based on some of the results that the team has posted," he said.
"Mark [Reytblat] and John [Evans] continue to give us workouts that enable us to really focus on our events and strengthen ourselves at the same time."
Several women had notable finishes as well. Kim Farrington '13 won the triple jump with a distance of 10.69 meters. That was .35 meters farther than the next-fastest collegiate, hailing from Division I Bryant University.
Ali Kirsch '14 was the top runner in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:26.07, good for a second-place finish. She defeated fellow long-distance runner Kristi Pisarik '15 by 0.32 seconds.
In the high jump, Lili Parenteau '12 finished second with a height of 1.57 meters (5 feet, 1 ¾ inches), still failing to rival her previous best peformance at the Bowdoin Invitational on Jan. 14.
Kate Warwick '12 was the only participant in the 3,000-meter run but still managed to make a statement, finishing four seconds back from first with a time of 9:57.89.
Brittany Bell '13 finished second in the 60-meter dash preliminaries with a time of 8.05 seconds, while also notching a fourth-place finish in the finals with a time of 8.07.
Maser was also impressed with the women's results, stating that their dedication and skill will definitely show at future scoring events.
"We're approaching some scoring meets soon, and the work that the whole team has been putting in is definitely going to show at these meets," he said.
"We have strong talent in every event, so I expect that we're going to turn in some really strong performances when UAA Championships and other big scoring meets roll around."
Maser did give a disclaimer after this statement though, citing that it is important both squads maintain this focus throughout the season.
"As the season goes on, we have to stay focused and be sure not to wear down at all," he said. "It's a long season, but as the team continues to put in great work, success is surely going to follow."
Both track squads return to competition at the Boston University Terrier Classic this Saturday.
— Adam Rabinowitz contributed reporting.
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