Track teams sprint toward the final stretch

Most people scream or duck at the sound of a gunshot. For Yale's track and field athletes, however, the blast is a signal to "run like hell." In the early stage of the indoor season, both coaches and runners are preparing not only for the starting gun, but also for the finish line.

Coaches and spectators alike have noticed a trend of gradual improvement in this season's meets. On Sat., Jan. 17, the men's team placed fourth in the first round of the New England Challenge Cup in Providence. In the consolation round on Fri., Jan. 23, the Yale squad gave a strong second-place effort, finishing with a total of 111 points, four points behind first-place Rhode Island.

"The meet was an excellent overall performance," Coach Steve Bartold said. "It was particularly good because we beat New Hampshire, a team that beat us earlier in the season." The Bulldogs also defeated squads from Boston College and Boston University.

Despite these recent successes, hurdles still lie ahead for the team, including a lack of depth in field events. Last weekend, Yale earned 86 percent of its points in running events. This imbalance is partially due to injuries. Bartold noted "thrower Steve O'Connor, TC '98, could be the best in the league at the 35-lb. weight throw if he were healthy." Unfortunately, O'Connor has a rotator cuff ailment that prevents him from competing at his potential.

Still, Bartold hopes his younger athletes will vault the team to greater success. While the squad relies on its experienced upperclassmen, like veterans Peter Coghlan, JE '98, Damon Hanlan, MC '98, and Chris Karas, SM '98, the efforts of less established runners are also crucial. "We're all pretty pumped," runner Jason Rife, SM '01, said. "The freshmen are especially ready to contribute."

"We always get great performances from [Coghlan, Hanlan and Karas]," Bartold noted. "It's the younger runners that we're looking to for wins." The rookies have been putting forth tremendous efforts to meet the high expectations. Rife, Matt Miesionczek, JE '01, Joel Montgomery, ES '01, and Zach Boisi, TD '01, broke a Yale freshmen record in the 4x400 relay.

February is a critical month for the team, since it contains two focal points of the season: the Harvard-Yale-Princeton meet and the Ivy League Championship. At the rate the Bulldogs are moving, they are definitely ready to make a strong showing. "The team is working really hard," Bartold said. "We've overcome a lot of adversity to get where we are and we're definitely looking ahead to the rest of the season."

The women, who took first-place in the consolation round of the New England Challenge Cup, have also demonstrated great potential in the indoor arena. But Coach Mark Young's, ES '68, team is, well, young. There is a small senior contingent, but freshmen and sophomores make up nearly two-thirds of the roster. In a tough league, dominated by the powerhouses of Princeton, Brown, and Dartmouth, it is sometimes difficult for the less-experienced Yale squad to keep up.

"Some of our athletes are where we expect them to be," Young said, "while others need to take their performance up a notch." A few women have risen to Young's challenge, giving outstanding performances in the early weeks of the indoor track season. Trudy Taylor, BK '99, has broken the Yale record in the 20-pound weight throw three times, and has qualified provisionally for the NCAA tournament. "I'm looking to advance myself and compete at nationals," she said. Taylor's dominance shows the maturity the team needs to achieve if it is to finish in the top half of the league.

Aside from taylor, another established Bulldog has met with success this winter. On Sat., Jan. 24, team captain Deb Levy, BK '98, demonstrated her talents as she qualified for the ECACs with a record-breaking, personal-best high jump, and just missed qualifying for the pentathlon.

If you think that Ed Koch of the People's Court is the only person preparing for the trials of February, think again. The Yale women must compete against Harvard and Princeton on Sat., Feb. 14, and begin Ivy League Championship action on Sat., Feb. 28.

"Our goal," Young said, "is to click on all cylinders by the time those crucial meets arrive, and to improve on last year's fairly dismal results." Indeed, in last year's league championships, the Elis failed to click at all and sputtered to a disappointing finish.

Despite the group's outstanding dynamic spirit and work ethic, the Bulldogs will need more than these three elements to be victorious in the league championships. "We've got to perform at our definite potential," Young explained. "If we do, we're sure to do extremely well."

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