Women's Track Places Second At ECAC Championships
Results
Athletes of the Meet: Grace Claxton, Briana Cherry-Bronson
BOSTON – The University at Albany women's indoor track & field team ended their 2015 campaign with a runner-up finish at ECAC Indoor Championships on Sunday. The Great Danes scored 48 points, trailing only two-time defending champion Connecticut, scored 53 points to win the title for the third consecutive year.
The UAlbany women tied for second with St. John's, who also scored 48 points. Georgetown placed fourth with 46 points and Liberty placed fifth with 43 points. Last year at this meet, the women placed sixth overall with 31 points.
The pentathlon was the only event contested on Friday. UAlbany's Paige Vadnais placed ninth overall, scoring a personal best 3,386 points. She placed third in the 60 hurdles in 9.11, ninth in the high jump in 5'-1.25”, ninth in the shot put in 30'-2”, 10th in the long jump in 16'-2.25”, and fourth in the 800 in 2:22.27. Her shot put and 800 marks were personal bests.
Saturday's track events kicked off with the 60 hurdles. Niamani Morrison placed 11th in the trials, qualifying for semis in a personal best 8.77. She placed 10th in the semis, once again running 8.77, but did not qualify for Sunday's final.
Grace Claxton ran 53.49 in the 400 trials, qualifying for Sunday's final in first place. The mark is a new school record and Puerto Rican indoor national record, surpassing her time of 53.59 in each. Aderinsola Ajala qualified ninth in a personal best 55.22. Halie Snyder placed 19th, finishing in 56.88. Kamilah Williams qualified eighth in the 500 in a personal best 1:13.77.
Moving to the relay trials, the 4x800 team of Nira Lovick, Breanna Cummings, Hannah Smith, and Schuyler Pruyn placed 11th in a season best time of 8:59.28. Lovick led off in 2:16.33, followed by Cummings in 2:13.95, Smith in 2:15.95, and Pruyn anchored in 2:13.03. The 4x400 team of Ajala, Snyder, Williams, and Claxton ran a season best time of 3:44.41 to qualify for finals in sixth place. Ajala led off in 56.82, followed by K. Williams in 55.75, Snyder in 57.22, and finally Claxton in 54.62.
Four field events were contested on Saturday, three of which contained UAlbany competitors. Alexx Baum placed eighth in the long jump, recording a mark of 18'-5.75”. Aiyanna James was 10th in 18'-0.25”. Briana Cherry-Bronson won the weight throw in 62'-8.75”. Lauren Lopano was 10th in 53'-10”. Chinwe Igwe was 14th in 51'-10”. In the high jump, Min Pacella placed sixth, clearing a personal best height of 5'-7.75”. Rochelle Reid placed 15th, clearing 5'-4.5”.
After the first full day of competition, UAlbany sat in third place with 14 points. Liberty led all schools with 28, followed by William and Mary in second with 20. Defending champion Connecticut was tied for fourth with Sacred Heart and Lehigh, all of whom scored 13 points.
Sunday's track events began with the distance medley relay. UAlbany's team of Smith, Akua Williams, Cummings, and Pruyn placed sixth in a season best time of 11:55.69. Smith led off in 3:39.88, followed by A. Williams in 58.51, Cummings in 2:15.70, and Pruyn in 5:01.60.
Claxton won the 400 in 53.67. Ajala placed ninth in 55.56. K. Williams placed seventh in the 500 in 1:14.63. Track events concluded with the 4x400 finals, where the team of Ajala, Snyder, K. Williams, and Claxton placed second overall, lowering their season best from the night before even further to 3:41.11, which also sets a new school record. Ajala led off in 55.85, followed by K. Williams in 55.69, Snyder in 55.81, and Claxton in 53.76.
In Sunday's field events, Janice Johnson placed eighth in the shot put with a mark of 43'-5”. Finally, in the triple jump, Solène Bastien placed third with a personal best mark of 41'-0.25”, and Baum placed fifth with a mark of 40'-6.75”. Bastien now ranks fourth all-time at UAlbany in the indoor triple jump.
UAlbany's indoor season is now over, and this weekend's competitors will now join their remaining teammates as they enter the transition stage to the outdoor season. The next event on the calendar is the Shamrock Invitational in South Carolina on March 19.
