Members of the Dartmouth men's and women's track and field teams travelled to Durham, N.H., last Saturday to compete in the University of New Hampshire Invitational. It was the first meet for both teams since their spring break trips to North and South Carolina.
The men finished the indoor season strong, taking third at the Indoor Heptagonal Championships, while the women finished in a disappointing tie for seventh with Yale University.
The first meet of the season back in the Northeast proved to be a different story, however, as the women took first in six different events.
"Saturday was a good start to the Spring season, both the weather and competitive spirit of the team," women's head coach Sandy Ford-Centonze said. "This was the first team meet since returning from spring break, so it was important to get off to a good start, and we did. We are picking up the intensity of the training to be able to peak at the right time the Outdoor Heptagonal Championships. I would say the highlight thus far has been our 4x400-meter relay team, which has run 3:50 both times this season, only one second off of the Dartmouth record."
The 4x400-meter team of Alexandra Tanner '11, Christina Supino '12, Natalie Stoll '10 and Elizabeth Garland '13 led the way for the Dartmouth women, taking first with a time of 3:50.96, a full six seconds ahead of the second place University of Maine squad.
The women also saw tremendous individual success, posting five wins. Supino won the 800-meter run in 2:13.75, two seconds ahead of second place finisher Seri Gordon of Northeastern University.
Amy Schuman '12 won the 1,500-meter run in 4:34, a mere .41 seconds ahead of New Hampshire's Allison Letourneau.
Tanner won the 400-meter hurdles in 1:02.22, over two seconds ahead of the field. Tanner is the defending Outdoor Heps champion in the event. Last year she ran a school-record time of 59.04. Tanner has three of the five fastest times in Dartmouth women's history, including the top two.
Laura Tabor '10 won the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 11:06.12, while Emmaline Berg '13 rounded out the individual wins with a victory in the shot put, throwing 45'10".
The men sent a small squad to the event, as the team plans to continue a vigorous training regimine until the end of the season.
Of the men who competed this weekend, only David Irving '11 won an event, placing first in the discus with a throw of 162'03". Irving also finished second in the hammer throw with a toss of 187'00".
"It was great to start the outdoor season off with some really nice weather at UNH," men's head coach Barry Harwick said. "I was particularly pleased with how Dave Irving threw in both the discus and hammer."
Tyler Ford '11 took second in the 400-meter run with a time of 50.18 seconds. Evan Bryant '12 followed closely with a time of 50.21 seconds, finishing third.
The Big Green had three other second-place finishers Chase Eldredge '11 in 5,000-meter run with a time of 15:24.74, Jacob Evanter '13 in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 15.84 and Andrew Ching '10 with a long jump of 22'00.25".
The Big Green men and women will take on New Hampshire and Middlebury College this Friday at 4 p.m. in Hanover.
