As the new outdoor track and field season approaches, let’s take a look back on how the Judges finished their 2019 indoor season.

For the men’s team, the first years dominated the indoor University Athletic Association Championships.  Dion Morris-Evans ’22 carried the team in the 60-meter hurdles, coming in fourth place with a time of 8.71. Jack Allan ’21 was right behind him in fifth place, with a time only .03 seconds slower. In the 4x400 relay, first-years Aaron Portman, Jamie O’Neil and Morris-Evans ran three of the four legs. Portman shot out of the gate followed by rookies O’Neil and Morris-Evans, while Churchill Perry ’20, brought up the rear. They finished sixth place with a time of 3:27.37, only one second behind Case Western. 

Senior Scott Grote ’19 ended his final indoor season successfully, placing sixth in shot put with a final distance of 12.72 meters and claiming the bronze in weight throw with a distance of 14.84 meters. Charlie Regan ’19 was equally successful, winning the bronze with a time of 7.11 seconds in the 60 meter dash and coming in fifth in the 200-meter dash with a time of 22.80 seconds. Perry, after four attempts and one foul, went on to place fourth in the triple jump, narrowly missing third place with a jump of 13.78 meters.

The men’s track and field team finished fourth out of seven with a score of 55, only five points ahead of New York University and Case Western Reserve University.

The women’s team also finished fourth overall with 67 points, narrowly beating out Case Western, which finished with 66 points.

Rookies Devin Hiltunen ’22 and Sonali Anderson ’22 both finished out their first indoor season strong. Hiltunen came in fifth place in the 200-meter dash and eighth in the 400 meters with times 26.35 seconds — only nine one hundredths of a second slower than fourth place — and 1:00.69, respectively.  In the 60-meter hurdles, Anderson finished sixth with a time of 9.34 seconds.

In the mile, the Judges had a clean sweep, claiming first, second and third places. Jac Guerra ’22 took third with a time of 5:06.61, barely missing the silver, which was claimed by senior Julia Bryson ’19 with a time of 5:06.19. Emily Bryson ’19 swept in with the gold, running a 5:02.74 mile.

Overall, the women dominated the distance races. Bryson took first place with a time of 9:48.13 in the 3000 meter. In the 4x400 relay, Leinni Valdez ’21, Lisbeth Valdez ’21, Doyin Ogundiran ’19 and Hiltunen, finished third with a time of 4:02.01. Seniors Julia Bryson, Maya Bliss, Emily Bryson, and Ogundiran had reason to celebrate as they claimed gold with a 12:08.81 run.

As the Judges gear up for the 2019 outdoor season, these are the competitors to keep an eye on as we anticipate a similarly successful season. 

In an interview with the Justice,   Guerra explained, "There are so many people who make up the success of this team. Through the Bryson sisters setting the bar for excellence, Meaghan Barry being a source of guidance, Andrea Bolduc, Danielle Berteaux and Niamh Kenney helping the rookies navigate through freshman year, to first years Erika Karlin and Natalie Hattan being superstar fans despite being injured." In addition, Guerra elaborated, "I'm very excited for outdoor track, because I believe that I was able to build a lot of confidence this season, as well as [during] cross country. I no longer feel like I'm new to this program and to collegiate running, so I'd like to start finding what barriers I can surpass with my running."