This past weekend, the women’s and men’s track and field teams traveled to Illinois Wesleyan and competed in the I-55 Triangular meet, placing first and second respectively. The Maroons captured a total of 10 event titles, which placed the women’s squad at No. 7 in the nation. The Maroons’ women’s event winners included Alisha Harris in the 60-meter and 200-meter, Nicole VacaGuzman in the 400-meter, Robin Peter in the 60-meter hurdles, Alexandra Thompson in the high jump, and Cassidy McPherson in the 1,200-meter. On the men’s side, event winners included Owen Melia in the 800-meter, Ryan Cutter in the 3,000-meter, Patrick LeFevre in the 60-meter hurdles, and Kiyan Tavangar in the 1,200-meter. Conference rival Wash U, unfortunately, beat out the men’s squad by just 10 points.
Second-year sprinter and hurdler Robin Peter commented on her excitement about this past weekend. “The meet was particularly exciting because we rarely get to run with other schools in our conference this early in the season, particularly Wash U,” Peter said. “We had strong performances from all parts of the team, both on the track and in the field events.”
Third-year sprinter Emma Koether echoed her teammate’s sentiments and commented on the women’s success this past weekend. “It was great to see our women’s team take home the win,” Koether said. “We have a lot of depth on the team this year. Strengths aren’t just concentrated on one event group, but span across the entire field.”
The team is excited for the rest of the indoor season and, with several athletes injured, are looking to get restored while testing the team’s depth.
“We still have a lot of athletes coming off of injuries, so we are hoping to keep everyone healthy and have people back on the track as the season progresses,” Peter added.
This past weekend was just the beginning for the Maroons. Moving forward, the team is looking to take the next step in all aspects of competition.
“Going forward our main focus will be on upping the intensity,” Koether continued. “We’ve passed the introduction period of the season at the season at this point, and are now ready to start competing aggressively.”
This upcoming Saturday, January 27, the men’s and women’s track teams will compete in the Grand Valley State Invite at 1 p.m.
“I’m excited for next weekend when we get to race on a 300m track,” Koether said, reflecting the attitude of the team. “I think everyone will get really pumped up to race on such a fast track, and the times will show for it.”
Tune in Saturday as the men’s track and field team looks to redeem itself and the women’s squad strives for its third straight win.
