By Nicole DeStefano
Staff Writer
The women’s and men’s track teams traveled to Boston to compete in the Boston University Valentine Invitational on Friday, Feb. 10. The Lions continued to impress at the Monmouth Winter Collegiate meet on Saturday, Feb. 11.
The lady Lions had a strong performance in the sprint events. Freshman Samantha Gorman clocked in at 58.69 and junior Jenna Ellenbacher finished in 1:00.49. The duo now hold the top two times in the New Jersey Athletic Conference.
Junior Danielle Celestin ran a season best in the 200-meter dash, crossing the finish line with a time of 26.23. Celestin and freshman Kaila Carter sprinted to 8.26 and 8.29 finishes in the 60-meter dash, respectively.
“My 200-meter time was a season best, which I am happy about,” Celestin said. “Working back into training after a hamstring injury was a minor setback regarding where I want to be at this point in the season, but I am looking forward to the NJAC conference met and another opportunity to run in a really competitive atmosphere.”
Freshman Katie LaCapria ran a season best time in the 800-meter race at the Valentine Invitational. She clocked in at 2:14.20. Her time currently ranks No. 11 in the fastest time among 800-meter Division III runners in the nation.
The women also had a strong showing in the distance events. Sophomore Erin Holzbaur competed in the 3000-meter race, clocking in at 10:05.97. Sophomore Madeleine Tattory also ran a time of 18:26.30 in the 5000-meter run.
In the field events, sophomore Danielle Cozzarelli finished fifth with a 10.53-meter jump in the triple jump. Meanwhile, freshman Allison Zelinski launched to eighth place with a 10-meter jump.
“The team thus far has put on a great showing at all our meets this season,” Celestin said. “We saw a handful of personal records and noteworthy performances this weekend.”
On the men’s side, the Lions came to compete. Sophomore Noah Osterhus ran 1:52.38 in the 800-meter dash, placing him seventh in the nation for D-III 800-meter runners.
Osterhus’s speedy performance garnered him the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC)’s Track Athlete of the Week honor for the week of Feb. 12.
Meanwhile, sophomore Nathan Osterhus had strong performances in both the 400- and 200-meter dash. Osterhus clocked in at 49.83 in the 400-meter and 22.20 in the 200-meter. dashing to a time of 22.63. In the long distance events, junior Dale Johnson finished
8:54.79 in the 3000-meter run.
Senior Brandon Mazzarella followed Johnson, finishing in 8:59.39.
On Saturday, sophomores Brian Mitchell and Daniel Brennan came in ninth and 10th place in the mile run with times of 4:33.67 and 4:34.86, respectively.
“The team performed really well and there were tons of personal records and season bests all around,” Mazzarella said. “Training has been going amazing, and it really showed in this weekend’s competition.”
