Several track and field athletes achieved qualifying marks for postseason contests at the Gotham Cup in New York on Friday.
The men's 4x800 relay team captured an 11th-place finish (8:10.35), posting an Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) qualifying mark. Team members included senior Josh Krowicki, freshman Kyle Roos and juniors Rob McGowan and Chris Guerriero. Krowicki and McGowan also met ECAC times in their respective events.
Senior Galen Johnson placed 11th in the unseeded mile (4:24.40). In the seeded 3,000 meters, both Guerriero and senior Brian Kopnicki achieved ECAC-worthy times.
"We have a lot of work we have to do still," Guerriero said, "but this team's attitude is a great motivator. . Hopefully it will help us achieve big things."
In the 4x400 relay, the College posted an ECAC mark (3:25.12). Senior Steve Murray, junior Woodrow Prevard and freshmen Kyle Gilroy and Jule Brooks teamed up for the accomplishment. Gilroy also earned an individual ECAC mark in the 60-meter hurdles.
In the unseeded 5,000-meter race, junior Kyle Alpaugh took fourth place (15:50.25).
Senior Brian Donatelli took second in the shot put (15.30 meters), earning top honors in the event, and finished fifth in the weight throw (16.58 meters).
The women's team also made an impact at the meet. The 4x400 relay team (sophomore Meghan Miller, junior Kristen Tricocci and freshmen Rochelle Prevard and Meryl Wimberly) met ECAC standards (4:06.79).
Tricocci was the top Division III finisher in the long jump (4.98 meters). Wimberly and Prevard met ECAC standards in the 500 meters, racing times of 1:19.69 (16th) and 1:21.20 (21st), respectively.
Junior distance runner Martine McGrath finished second in the 5,000-meter run, achieving an NCAA provisional time (17:33.54). Junior Nicole Ullmeyer finished 14th (19:50.32).
In the 1,000 meters, junior Stephanie Herrick captured sixth place (2:56:54) and a new College record. Herrick also participated in the fourth-place winning distance medley relay team that ran a combined time of 12:47.68 to meet ECAC standards.
Freshman Cristina D'Amato met ECAC standards in the weight throw with a heave of 13.24 meters.
The Lions opened their season at the New Year Invitational hosted by Princeton University on Dec. 8.
Junior Pasquale DiGiacchino met ECAC standards in the 500-meter race (1:07.36). In the 300-meter dash, McGowan ranked sixth (36.23). Donatelli placed in both the weight throw (49'5-1/3") and the shot put (45'2-1/4"). Freshman Matt Rosana took eighth place in the long jump (6.47 meters) while freshman Dennis Waite placed eighth in the 3,000 meters (9:06.25). Gilroy finished ninth in the 60-meter hurdles (8.68 seconds).
For the women's team, sophomore Jianna Spadaccini finished 13th in the 500-meter race (1:20.49), while Wimberly took 16th (1:21.5) and Prevard followed in 17th (1:21.84). All met ECAC standards.
Tricocci was the top finisher in the long jump, sailing to a third-place finish (5.30 meters) and placing 11th in the 300 meters (43.74). McGrath ran to a fourth-place finish in the 3,000 meters (12:25.44).
"We've only had a few team practices so far this year, so we are still getting back into the groove of things," Guerriero said. "However, we look similar to the way we did last year and we had a really good season."
The Lions will head to the Princeton University Relays on Saturday.
