Four Jumbos head to Nationals to close indoor track season

With the arrival of the NCAA Div. III Track and Field Championships at DePauw University this weekend, the indoor season has come to an official close for most of the women's track and field team. Four Jumbos made the trek to Greencastle, Indiana and will compete today in preliminary heats.

As the team's top performer throughout the season, junior Jessica Trombly is the only Jumbo that is competing in an individual event at Nationals. Trombly will square off against 15 other entrants in the 400 meter dash today. Trombly is seeded third with a time of 56.47 seconds.

About two hours after that race Trombly will join sophomore Sika Henry, freshman Rachel Bloom, and classmate Emily Bersin to take part in the 4x400 relay. With a seed time one tenth of a second slower than the automatic National qualifying time of 3:56.00, the squad is seeded eighth out of nine teams.

The fact that Tufts has representatives at the NCAA meet is a testament to the success of the season. Those returning to the squad trained productively and were able to come back with a renewed energy, only to be bolstered by a strong freshman class who made an immediate impact.

"One of the reasons we had such a great season is because we have such a versatile team," tri-captain Lauren Tormey said. "We have a lot of depth in a lot of areas and a fair number of talented freshmen."

One such freshman is Bloom, who came onto the squad with different aspirations than those she is currently pursuing. Bloom is a sprinter by nature and thus was reluctant to run the longer 400 race, never mind a leg of the 4x400 relay. After some prodding by coach Kristen Morwick, however, she was convinced to take part in the event and has emerged as a pivotal part of a relay team that progressed to Nationals.

Scoring close to 40 points in many meets, Trombly was also a key factor in the team's accomplishments indoors.

Though Trombly accounted for a large block of points, it was the contributions of others that made the Jumbos more than a team with a superstar. In the sprints and mid-distances, sophomores Claudia Clarke and Katie Sheedy and junior Katie Higley emerged to help lead the team. Henry faired well in the jumps as well as the relay and the trio of throwers -- sophomore Katie Antle, junior Gwen Campbell and junior tri-captain Jessica Gauthier -- showed constant improvement every week.

In an event that does not usually garner much attention, given the fact that it spans many events, sophomore Melissa Graveley faired well in the pentathlon. While competing in the high jump for the pentathlon at ECACs, Graveley made a tremendous leap of 5'4.25." Not only did she record a PR of more than two inches, but she also jumped close to the National provisional qualifying mark -- ending up a mere .25" off the standard.

"She was converted into a multi-eventer last year and has steadily improved, clearly making her mark in New England and the ECAC not only as one of the top high jumpers, but also as a multi-event athlete," Morwick said.

The team was more than happy with its performance this season as it achieved an unprecedented second place team finish at NESCACs, finishing behind perennial powerhouse Williams College. And in an interesting twist, Tufts ended up fifth overall at ECACs, one spot ahead of Williams, in a meet where the team wasn't expecting to place exceptionally well.

Many of those who contributed in the indoor season will have a chance to do the same outdoors as the outdoor season gets underway. In preparation for the season, those runners not competing in Nationals are gearing up for a Spring Break training trip to South Carolina.

The warmer climate will benefit the Jumbos and help bond a squad that has become slightly scattered since the start of postseason action that doesn't include everyone on the team. The team will compete in an invitational on Saturday, Mar. 22 while in South Carolina.

"It'll be good for intense training, to get in a hard week of training," Tormey said. "Some people's seasons ended around the Division III Championship meet, so now we have a chance to bring everyone back together and bond."