Sophomore Kelly Allen proved that she can hang with collegiate athletes in all divisions on Friday night when she finished in the top seven in both the discus and hammer throws at Princeton's Larry Ellis Invitational against a field of Div. I and Div. II competitors.
Allen, the only member of the Tufts team at the Invitational and one of only two Div. III athletes to compete, finished sixth out of a field of 28 in the hammer with a distance of 163−9, breaking her own school record of 162−11 and raising her NCAA standing to 20th in the event. The sophomore also finished in seventh place out of 24 athletes in her second event, with a discus throw of 138−7.
"It was a little weird not having the other three throwers with me and competing against girls I'd never thrown against, but it worked out really well," Allen said.
Allen drove down to New Jersey with seven track athletes from the men's team. The meet was a chance for the star sophomore to prove her worth against a higher level of competition as she continues to work her way up to national qualifying times.
"It was like going into uncharted territory," Allen said. "I've never been the only Division III girl, and it was great for my confidence to know that all that separates us is division, not talent."
The rest of the women's team competed on Saturday at a home meet at Dussault Track in the athletes' final opportunity to prepare for NESCAC Championships next weekend at Wesleyan — the largest team meet of the season.
Standout performances included freshman Lauren Creath's first−place finish in the 5,000 meters in 18:58:89 and senior Amy Wilfert's first−place showing in the 800 meters in a time of 2:20:22.
In field events, senior tri−captain Kanku Kabongu won the long jump contest, consisting only on nine athletes, by reaching 16−7 3/4 and junior Ronke Oyekunle won the shot put with a throw of 39−7 1/4.
The athletes grappled with a rainy Saturday that hurt the team's chances of improving qualifying times for nationals. Still, the team was able to post a few event wins and personal records.
"We knew that a meet like this would not get canceled in the rain, and as a team we did well with that," freshman Laura Peterson said. "It would have been a lot worse if we hadn't lined the track and supported each other."
The Jumbos will head to Wesleyan this Saturday for NESCACs, where they have finished in the top three for the last nine seasons. Allen will be defending titles in the discus and javelin throws, while the team as a whole aims to knock off Williams and earn its first−ever conference title.
After dealing with two weeks of abysmal Boston weather, the Jumbos could use some sunshine. The forecast for Middletown, Conn., on Saturday? A gorgeous 62 degrees without a cloud in the sky.
"I'm really excited for the meet," Peterson said. "If we can do well in such bad conditions, imagine what we can do with the weather cooperating with us."
