Average Performances Set The Tone For MIT at NEICAAA Championship
February 24-25, 2017
It is not unusual for the MIT Track & Field team to have rather average performances as they come down and recover from the emotional high from last week's New England Division III Track & Field Championship. This, along with the general lack of a competitive atmosphere at the NEICAAA Championship this weekend made it difficult for some of the athletes to get up for the meet.
The NEICAAA Championship, was once the highlight of each season as the best athletes from Division I, II and III competed against each other in each of the three seasons (cross country, indoor track & field, outdoor track & field). Chasing the best opportunities for each athlete became a higher priority for many programs that were more concerned about qualifying individuals for Nationals than how well the team placed in a particular meet or championship. This philosophy gained traction, so more and more programs have gone in this direction. In addition, conferences and other championships were added to the indoor season, which inevitably caused conflicts with the NEICAAA meet. The final straw happened this past year when due to the extremely high rental cost of using the Boston University facility, the association moved the meet to the Reggie Lewis track, a much slower banked track than the one at BU. Unfortunately, the NCAA provides the same corrective indexing for all banked or over-sized tracks. For those programs trying to get their athletes to Regionals or Nationals, the Reggie Lewis track does not present the best alternative for oval runners.
On day one of the championship, the highlight was provided by Haley Strouf '18 in the Long Jump. Strouf placed third with a personal best jump of 18-6 1/2. Nneoma Okonkwo '18 won the event with a 19-1 1/4 effort, giving MIT 16 points in the event. At this time, Okonkwo and Strouf rank second and 13th in the country for Division III.
Tech had five vaulters in the women's Pole Vault and three of them ended up placing, although none had personal bests. Kaitlyn Sparks '20 placed third at 11-11 3/4 and is sitting in 16th on the NCAA list with her 12-1 1/2 vault from last week. Kari Stromhaug '19 tied for fourth at 11-7 3/4 and Jen Tylock '17 was sixth at 11-1 3/4. This gave Tech another 13 1/2 points. While not placing, Makenzie Patarino '19 and Kathleen Brandes '19 jumped 11-1 3/4 and 10-8 respectively.
The other points for the Engineers on day one were earned by Ariela Slutsky '18 in the Weight Throw. Although she had a wasted big throw that was a sector foul, her best on this day was 52-5 1/4, which was good for seventh place, giving MIT 31 1/2 points at the conclusion of day one. Slutsky is sitting at 18th on the NCAA list and only the top 17 get to go.
On the track Marissa McPhillips '20 qualified for the final in the 800 with a 2:15.98. Making a couple of strategic errors with regard to position, the freshman knows she needs to fix those in the finals.
In the 500, Bailey Tregoning '19 and Gabriella Zak '20 were representing MIT and both were in the same heat. The pace for the first 200 was quick at 28.8, which caused Zak to think, essentially ending her competitive race. Tregoning moved up on the second lap, but made a decision to pass too conservatively and too late on the straight. The opposing runner swung her arm out, grabbing Tregoning and not letting her pass. This took Tregoning out of her game long enough to keep her from racing her best. She managed to earn the final qualifying position in 1:17.55, far removed from what she is capable of running.
In the 400 Hannah Chen '18 continued to struggle. Getting out better than in previous meets, her 27.6 caused her undue fatigue. She struggled in the final 200, finishing in 59.51. After qualifying for the NCAA Championship the past two years, the junior has one week remaining to get the job done.
For the men, both Chris Washington '20 and Alec Reduker '20 placed in the High Jump. Although neither jumper accomplished what they hoped for, Washington tied for fifth at 6-6 1/4 and Reduker tied for eighth at 6-4 1/4. Both are tied for 22nd place on the NCAA list
Bobby Upton '20 cleared 14-11 in the Pole Vault, earning a tie for seventh. The freshman has one more chance to earn a trip to Nationals. Upton and teammate Scott Cameron '19 are tied on the NCAA list at 26th.
In the 800, both Nathan Munet '19 and Tyndale Hannan '20 were hoping to run fast enough to get another opportunity to race next week. Munet ran a solid race, going with the field through quick splits of 27 and 55 seconds. His 600 was a very solid 1:23, but was unable to close well from there, slowing to a 1:55.05. Hannan raced as if he needs a mental and physical break. He moved to the back of the pack and was never in it, running 1:58.84.
Day two began with Chris Sweeney '18 in the 60HH. Getting a solid start Sweeney finished second in his heat, running a season best 8.37. Sweeney missed the finals by one position
Based on her near national qualifying 7.79 60 Meter Dash performance the week before, Okonkwo needed to work on her start and other phases of her race. While not having the best race, the junior still ran a very respectable 7.88, missing the finals. She currently sits at 18th on the NCAA list.
Tech was represented by two runners in the women's Mile. Both Katie Bacher '20 and Clemmie Mitchell '18 were in the fast section. The pace of the leader was very fast. The race for second place was quite fast as well as both MIT runners came through the 400 in 72 and they were towards the back of the pack. The pace slowed and both Bacher and Mitchell moved up in the pack, splitting 2:27 at the halfway mark. The pace slowed further, even for Bacher who continued to move up in the pack, splitting 3:43 at the 1320. Mitchell had a period where she gave up and that was much of the third quarter as she fell back to 3:47. In the final 400 Bacher ran out of gas but still ran a PR of 4:59.46 for fifth place. Mitchell woke up with 300 to go, finishing in 74 for a PR of 5:01.01 for seventh place. Bacher is 17th on the NCAA list and Mitchell is 29th.
In the men's Mile, Aidan Gilson '19 was trying again to find the competitive spark to keep him fully engaged in the race in order to run to his potential. The fast section went out quick and even though Gilson was towards the back he came through the 440 in 62.6. Gilson moved up well throughout the race, but after a split of 2:06 he lost the battle with his focus for most of the third quarter. In the final quarter he re-engaged, finishing with a 61 to place fifth in a personal best of 4:13.33. Gilson is 28th on the NCAA list.
Tregoning was up next for the final of the 500. She ran a near perfect first 200, splitting 28.2, but since she was so far behind it appeared she lost hope. During the second 200 she settled, splitting 59.2, but then finished with an 18 final 100 as she gave up a little in the final 60-70 meters. Her final time of 1:17.32 was good for seventh place. Tregoning is third on the NCAA list in the 800.
The final running event for MIT was the final of the women's 800. McPhillips competed without reservation, but that meant getting pulled out in splits of 31, 64 and 1:38. Throughout this pace she moved up in the field, all the way to fourth place before hitting a wall in the final 100 after trying to move into third place. In the final 50 she lost three places to finish in seventh with a hard earned time of 2:15.72. McPhillips is in 19th position on the National list in the Mile and 24th in the 800.
MIT's final competitor was Natalie Alper '17 in the High Jump. Alper cleared the opening height of 5-3 1/4, but was unable to clear 5-6.
Next week, MIT will go to the Final Qualifier at Tufts University for their last opportunity to prepare for the NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championship. The Engineers will have to work on recovery and up their game if they wish to go into the National Championship with a chance of making the podium.
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