The Lions continued to roar through the spring track season by collecting Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) qualifying times and one NCAA qualifier at the Greyhound Invitational in Bethlehem, Pa., on Saturday.
The women started off the day in a big way as the 4x400 relay team, comprised of senior Angela Tecco, junior Jessica Bonelli, sophomore Stephanie Herrick and freshman Jennifer Caratola, finished in second place for an NCAA provisional mark of 3:53.01.
Herrick also had a successful day as she set a meet record in the 800 meters with a time of 2:15.79. Tecco was not far behind in second place with a time of 2:15.96, and junior Sara Best took fourth at 2:17.91, as all three women recorded ECAC qualifiers.
Continuing the success for the College was sophomore Martine McGrath, who took first in the 5,000 meters with a time of 17:42.05. Sophomore Megan O'Leary finished fifth in the same race at 18:34.02, while senior Jenna Prendergast rounded out the Lions at seventh with a time of 18:39.48.
Bonelli placed fifth in the 400 meters with an ECAC-worthy time of 57.64 seconds.
In other women's events, two freshmen collected ECAC qualifying times. Freshman Meghan Miller took seventh in the 400-meter hurdles, clocking in at 1:06.34, while fellow freshman Priscilla Senyah placed seventh in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 15.87 seconds.
Freshman Ashley Krauss rounded out the day for the women in the shot put as she notched an eighth-place finish with a throw of 10.57 meters. Krauss also finished in 13th place in the hammer throw with a personal-best distance of 32.55 meters.
For the men, the 5,000 meters was dominated by the College. Five of the top nine participants were Lions and leading the way was senior Matt Randal, who grabbed a second-place finish and an ECAC qualifying time of 15:31.58. Following Randal were sophomore Greg Bull in third at 15:38.98, freshman Brandon Rodkewitz in fifth at 15:50.19, junior Steve Kinney in eighth at 16:07.24 and sophomore Matt Dolan finishing ninth 16:10.25.
"Although no one had personal best times (in the 5,000)," Kinney said, "I feel we did a good job of racing during a brutally hot race."
The men's 4x400 team ended strong with a third place finish. Consisting of sophomore Rob McGowan and freshmen DeShard Stevens, Woodrow Prevard and Steve Murray, the unit qualified for the ECACs with a mark of 3:19.94.
The ECAC qualifiers did not end there, as three runners enjoyed the distinction in the 400 meters. McGowan finished fifth in 49.30 seconds, Murray took ninth in 50.14 and Prevard finished in 10th at 50.33 seconds. Junior Galen Johnson also brought home an ECAC-worthy time in the 3,000-meter steeplechase by taking second with a time of 9:42.12.
Junior Brian Donatelli started off his day by placing fourth in the hammer throw with a distance of 46.18 meters. This earned him an ECAC qualifying mark and the distinction of top NCAA Division III performer in that event. Donatelli also recorded a sixth-place finish in the shot put with a distance of 14.60, grabbing another ECAC mark.
"Coming into the meet, I was expecting a little more than what I had actually done in the meet," Donatelli said. "But overall, I had a day I could be pleased with for the most part."
In other men's results, junior Anthony Arnold placed fourth in the 1,500 meters at 4:03.96, while sophomore Al Wonesh ended the 400-meter hurdles in fifth at 56.23 seconds. Senior Colin Pierce earned an ECAC distance of 13.44 meters in the triple jump for a sixth-place finish, and senior Dan Mitchell achieved a personal best javelin throw of 52.08 meters for an ECAC qualifying mark.
In Princeton at the Larry Ellis Invitational, senior Jeff Zodda finished the 800 meters as the top NCAA Division III performer. His fifth-place finish in 1:51.65 not only met NCAA provisional standards but was also one of the fastest times this spring.
The College hosts the Lions' Invitational on Friday and Saturday, and then head to the Penn Relays at the University of Pennsylvania.
