The women's track team squeaked by Middlebury for a third-place finish out of 22 teams at the New England Division III Championship Meet, held this past Saturday at Brandeis University. The Jumbo seniors were instrumental in the result, scoring 40 of the 58 points.
Tufts was beaten out by tough competition from Wheaton, the meet's winner (199), and second-place Williams (134), but managed to outdo Middlebury by one point, also finishing ahead of Wesleyan (fifth, 44), Colby (sixth, 43.5), and Amherst (seventh, 40).
"It's just exceptionally competitive in New England in track and field," coach Kristen Morwick said. "We were duking it out with the rest of New England for third place."
Highlights from the weekend included senior tri-captain Leslie Crofton's first-place run in the 5,000 (17:45.80). Crofton finished nearly 20 seconds ahead of her closest competition, having to keep pace by herself throughout the race. Although not Crofton's best time, the senior is in great shape the remaining postseason meets.
"Leslie had no competition," Morwick said. "If she had, she would've run faster."
Senior tri-captain Sarah Deeb continues to improve her times on a weekly basis. Saturday, Deeb took home second-place finishes for the Jumbos in both the 400 (57.27) and the 200 (25.94). In the 400, Deeb sped up in the last hundred yards to pass Wheaton's Tenille Johnson (57.89) and nearly caught the winner, Wheaton's Amber James. Deeb fell just two-tenths of a second short of victory.
"Sarah was definitely amazing in the 400," freshman Amy Spiker said. "It looked like she was going to pass the girl at the end."
"She always races really smart," Mason said. "She's conservative in the first lap, but she just busts it out in the second."
Deeb was also part of the women's 4x400 team, and actually topped her individual 400 time with a 56-second split, leaning into the finish past her Williams competition to get the Jumbos the silver medal (4:02.58). Without the .8 second finish ahead of Williams, Tufts' one-point win over Middlebury might have been lost.
"That's what clinched the meet for us," Morwick said.
Freshman Shushanna Mignott has stepped up over the last few weeks to become one of the team's top , pulling together an important third-place finish in the triple jump (35' 3") this weekend.
"Shushanna jumped really well. She's kind of a quiet member of the team," Spiker said. "She's really an awesome performer and an excellent athlete."
Senior Folake Aaron, who has already qualified for Nationals, took fourth (8.44) in the highly-competitive 55 hurdles.
"It was really intense. It looked like something from the Olympics," Mason said. "They all had this determined look. The gun goes off and everyone focuses on them."
Bersin ran her personal best in the 600, taking an impressive seventh (1:40.95).
Claudio, who recorded her personal best in the trials for the 55, took ninth in overall in the event. Junior Lauren Esposito was back in form with her close ninth-place finish in the 800 (2:24.46), and junior Colleen Burns managed to pull in a team point with her eighth place in the 1,000 (3:08.23).
Junior Sarah Leistikow competed in her first full pentathlon of the season and took fifth after competing in the six separate events.
Sophomores Kristen Munson, Trombly, Mary Nodine, and freshman Lauren Caputo managed to take tenth in the distance medley relay (DMR), but are convinced they can do better.
"I'm excited for the DMR this weekend because I think we should do well," said sophomore Jess Trombly. She said that the team would hopefully run the DMR at the ECAC Championships in two weeks and attempt to qualify for Nationals.
Leistikow and senior Nadia Samadani both picked up team points in the long jump, taking seventh (16' 4.25") and eighth (15' 11.75"), respectively. Spiker sailed through the air to grab an impressive sixth in the high jump (4' 11").
This weekend, Tufts will host the All New England Championships, with about 20 Jumbos competing. With the competition getting fiercer by the week -the All New England meet features Div. I competition - the season nears a close with only two meets left before Nationals.
"In New England, we're one of the few teams that has had more than one person qualified for nationals," Morwick said. "Our best kids look great, so I think that's a good sign."
