After facing strong competition at the outdoor Heptagonal Championships earlier in the month, the Dartmouth men's and women's track and field teams continued their spring campaigns with solid individual performances at the IC4A Championships and the Eastern College Athletic Conference Championships last weekend at Princeton, N.J.
Although the men's and women's teams finished tied for 23rd and tied for 18th overall, respectively, several Big Green athletes stood out from the crowd with high marks.
On the women's side, Alexandra Tanner '11 led the Big Green with a third-place finish in the finals of the 400-meter intermediate hurdles with a time of 59.21 seconds. Tanner, who broke the Dartmouth record in the same event earlier this month, was only 0.12 seconds behind her personal best.
"The main thing I always want to work on and make sure I do, when both racing and practicing, is making sure I'm aggressive to and over every hurdle," Tanner said.
The Big Green's Emily Daly '09 had an impressive third-place finish in the hammer throw on Saturday, posting a mark of 57.64 meters.
Natalie Todd-Zebell '09 followed up her teammate's success by placing fifth in the pole vault, clearing the bar at 3.75 meters.
On Sunday, Daly continued her success, posting a toss of 13.86 meters in the shot put to finish in seventh place. Sarah Klassen '10 took 11th overall in high jump, while teammate Jaclyn Wypler '11 finished 15th in the javelin with a throw of 39.15.
Tanner and Daly -- both of whom qualified for the NCAA Regionals, which will take place later this month -- were named first and second-team All-Ivy in their events, respectively. Todd-Zebell and heptathlete Karen Woolley '09 also earned second-team All-Ivy honors.
On the men's side, Tim Wunderlich '09 led the Big Green with a resurgent fifth-place finish in the decathlon, posting 6605 points with top marks in the javelin and the discus throw.
"The first day was a bit of a disappointment, but I wasn't expecting much out of myself, so I was trying to brush off my performances," Wunderlich said. "I went into the second day with a goal in mind: break 6600 points and finish in the top five."
Wunderlich's teammates were not as successful. David Irving '11 finished in 16th in the hammer throw with a mark of 56.34 meters.
Sprinter Trevor Middleton '09 finished in 23rd in the 800-meter with a time of 1:52.08.
On Sunday, the 4x800-meter relay team posted a solid performance, finishing in seventh place with a time of 7:38.41.
Although the men's team stood in 11th place on Saturday, the Big Green was unable to increase its point tally in Sunday's concluding events, finishing in a tie for 23rd overall with 12 points.
Despite some recent shortcomings, Wunderlich and cross-country runner Thomas Robbins '11 were named second-team All-Ivy after their impressive performances at the Heptagonal Championships and last weekend's events.
Tim Edmonds '09 explained that championship events near the end of the season largely reflect the overall progress certain athletes have made throughout the season.
"This meet is a huge indication of the progress individuals on the team have made at this point, because of the very competitive nature of the meet," Edmonds said. "Being competitive against such a tough field gives some legitimacy to our success."
Both the men's and women's teams will compete in the Twilight Meet at Bentley College this weekend, before the NCAA Regionals on May 29.
