The Brandeis men’s and women’s track and field teams brought in the new year with second-place team finishes at the Reggie Poyau Memorial Invitational meet at home on Saturday. The University of Southern Maine narrowly defeated both squads after a full day of hard-fought competition.

This was the annual home meet for Brandeis track and field, and the athletes did not disappoint the home crowd. The men’s team took home five events, while the women’s team took home six events. 

For the women, no one could compete with the Judges distance runners in the mile run, as the squad took home the first five spots. Julia Bryson ’19 dominated in usual fashion with an outstanding first-place time of 5:24.06.  Andrea Bolduc ’21 came in second with a time of 5:33.68, just ahead of Kyra Shreeve ’18 at 5:33.75. Meaghan Barry ’19 came in fourth with a time of 5:38.96, and Rose Monaghan ’19 rounded out the top five with a time of 5:43.90.  This mile run was a statement victory for the Brandeis women’s distance runners.  

Additionally for the women, middle-distance runner Lisbeth Valdez ’21 blew past her competition in the 600-meter runner with a winning time of 1:41.77. The rookie beat her second-place competitor by more than 11 seconds. In the 800-meter run, distance runner Doyin Ogundiran ’19 won with the top-ranked time in all of Division III this season at 2:20.14. Distance runner Emily Bryson ’19 then added another win to her legendary career with a winning time of 10:09.71 in the 3000-meter run. In the field, thrower Jordin Carter ’18 brought home the gold with a 13.30-meter toss in the 20-pound weight throw.

The men’s distance runners refused to be outshined by the women’s team, as they took home the top four spots in the mile run. Veterans led the way as Ryan Stender ’18 took home the top spot with a time of 4:26.69, followed by Mitchell Hutton ’18 at 4:29.05, Max Whitmore ’18 at 4:29.34 and Liam Garvey ’18 at a personal best time of 4:31.34. With the men’s and women’s distance squads dominating from the start, fans should be excited for what lies ahead this season.

The men’s sprinters helped steal the show for Brandeis as well with three wins on the day. Jack Allan ’20 took home the 55-meter hurdles with an impressive personal best time of 8.08. Furthermore, Churchill Perry ’20 recorded a first-place time of 23.04 in the 200-meter dash (also his personal best mark), and graduate student Irie Gourde ’17 brought home the gold with a time of 50.81 in the 400-meter dash. In the field, jumper Aaron Corin ’20 earned his first collegiate win in the pole vault after recording a personal best height of 4.25 meters.

This was a fantastic start to the year for all of Brandeis track and field as both squads showed off their remarkable roster depths. With a plethora of talent in all event areas, the Judges are showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon this season. With the wins spread out among the graduating classes, the Brandeis Track and Field program looks healthy and promises to be a contender for years to come. The Judges will next compete at the Greater Boston Track Club Invitational hosted by Harvard University on Sunday. After that, the Judges will travel downtown to Boston University for the Terrier Classic which will take place from Jan. 26, to Jan. 27.