2000 Outdoor Track Meet Highlights

All results can be found in the schedule/results section
Click on the (Student Article) for the article in the school paper



NCAA's - May 25-27 at North Central


Nicole Campbell proved that her Indoor Triple Jump Title was no fluke as she captured the outdoor title, for her 2nd National Championship. Heading into the final round in 2nd place with a 39 foot jump, she uncorked her winning jump in the 1st round of the finals hitting 40-2.5 and winning by 8 inches. Moments after Nicole's winning jump, fellow senior Dini Pineda lined up in the finals of the 1500 after a brilliant semi final race (4:37). The field of 12 narrowed to 10 people as they came down the homestretch towards the bell lap when Dini made a bold move racing to the front and starting the real racing. She ran a great last lap and finished in 7th place, earning her not only another 2 second PR but also All-American accolades in her final collegiate race. Emily Lobsenz, despite not running for the last 4 weeks due to a back injury, ran a gutsy 10k and once healthy, will certainly be a factor in the scoring.

For the men, the lone representative was senior Bruce Perlow. Bruce did not get great positioning at the start of the race and spent the first 600m of the race playing catch up before moving into 3rd position at the start of the final straightaway, but the early catchup work caught up to him as he finished in 6th place with a 1:52.34.

Open New Englands - May 12 & 13th


Both the men and the women looked a little flat due to a strenuous week of final exams, writing papers and packing up rooms. Bruce Perlow led the men as he raced to an NCAA provisional time to win his trial heat and then came back to place 6th in the final. Jared Moshe PR'd in the 400 in the trials inching closer and closer to the 48 second barrier. Jeff Willis came up short in his quest to make a return trip to NCAA's, as he remained tough all season long despite an achilles injury that prevented any running for 2 months. Mike Morris, still bothered by an injury suffered at NESCAC's, ran a gutsy Steeple chase adn will now have to wait until Sunday to find out whether or not he will get another chance to race at NCAA's. The 4 x 400 team of Moshe, Perlow, Robert Long and Willis closed out their relay season with  their fastest time of the year.

The women were again led by Nicole Campbell who placed 6th and 2nd in the long and triple jumps respectively. She was leading the triple jump until the 2nd to last jump, similar to the result by the saem NU  jumper during the indoor season. Amie Shei won her section of the 400 in a cold drizzle. Emily Dubinsky, running her 3rd 10 in a row, showed the effects of that yet still ran strong enough to earn All-New England honors. The 4 x 800 relay of Rancourt, Kilgour, Pineda and Perez finished 7th to earn All-New England honors. Molly Burnett took a fall at the 200m mark of the 5k yet still ran tough as she got back up and continued racing.

DIII New Englands - May 6th


The men travelled to Springfield while the women made the trek to Colby for the DIII NE's. While the women had perfect racing conditions, the men competed in sweltering conditions that made running above 800m rather difficult. Bruce Perlow led the men's 11th place showing as he won his first outdoor title in the 800 as he made a strong move in the 2nd lap to open a lead that led him to a NCAA provisional qualifying mark. Jeff Willis continues to improve as he rounds into racing form after a long layoff due to an achilles injury. Robert Long broke the 50 second barrier in the 400 as he raced to a 49.84 time in the trials, missing finals my one place. Jared Moshe ran a 22.24 in the trials and then came back to place 4th in the finals. Pat Hayes and Ok Ugwonali both earned NE honors by placing 6th and 8th in the 110 High hurdles. The 4 x 400 (Moshe, Perlow, Long and Willis) ran the fastest time of the season and look to improve on that this weekend.

The women had the best ever showing at the meet as they placed 6th overall and had tremendous showings in all events. Dini Pineda smashed the school record in the 1500 as she finished 2nd in an NCAA provisional qualifying time. Nicole Campbell won the Ttriple Jump, finished 2nd in the long jump and placed 4th in the 200, as well as running a leg on the 7th place 4 x 100. Ali Stahl had a huge breakthrough in the long jump as she jumped over a foot farther then her best and grabbed 3rd place. Amie Shei also ran to her best time and earned NE honors in the 400, and then came back with a very strong anchor leg in the 4 x 400. Molly Burnett earned NE honors in the 3000 as she, and Sarah Heard both set new PR's by over 10 seconds, Ali Dimon finished 8th in the 5000 with a new PR, and Emily Dubinsky placed 6th in the 10k and cut over a minute off her time to qualify for Open NE's this weekend. Diana Rancourt and Laurel Kilgour ran to season bests in the 800.

NESCAC's - April 29 & 30


(Student Article)
Tufts was the site for this years NESCAC Championships and both the men and women took advantage of the nice weather conditions and great competition as they finished 5th and 6th respectively. The women were led by the NESCAC performer of the meet (2nd year in a row) Nicole Campbell. She started off her weekend with a new NESCAC and school record in the triple jump with a 40-5 effort, then came back on sunday to win the long jump, the 100m, brought the 4x100 (Stahl, Kristie Ford, Shei) relay from 8th to 4th with a blistering sprint and then anchored the 4th place 4x400. In all, she accounted for 40 of the team's 64 points. Emily Lobsenz, despite suffering from an injury due to a fall, ran her personal best in the 10,000 to qualify provisionally for NCAA's. Emily Dubinsky and Katie Famous also ran to new PR's in the same race. Dini Pineda finished 4th in the 1500 and 3000 with a new PR in the latter race, as well as anchoring the school record breaking 4 x 800 (Diana Rancourt, Kate Hamill and Annie Perez) the day before. Amie Shei raced her best 400 of the season, and then came back even faster in the 4 x 400 teaming with Hamill, Perez and Campbell. Ali Stahl placed a surprise 7th in the long jump, Ali Dimon and Molly Burnett placed 7th and 8th in the 5000, Courtney Jennings placed 7th in the 1500, Jenna Obelsky PR'd in the shot put getting over 31 feet.

The men were bolstered by some terrific performances in the shorter events. Jared Moshe had a great weekend as he finished 2nd and 3rd in the 200 and 400 racing to big PR's in both events. Greg Baker ran a huge PR in the 200 to earn 5th place, while also running a great leadoff in the 4 x 100. OK Ugwonali arguably had the best performance for the team as he came out of his hurdling shell and reeled off 5th place finishes in the 110 and 400 Hurdles in new PR's. Pat Hayes finished in 4th in the 110's. Greg O'Neill had a big PR to finish 5th in the shot put. Mike Morris, despite crashing into the steeple barrier on the last lap and almost falling at the water pit due to the pain in his knee from the fall seconds before, still managed to qualify provisionally for NCAA's and was nipped at the line for the victory in the 3000 Steeplechase. Also in the steeplechase, Brian Gillis and Carson Taylor both raced to their fastest times of the season. Bruce Perlow had a nice weekend as he led off the 4th place DMR (Long, Kozyak, Robinson) and handed the baton well ahead, then placed 4th in the 1500 and came back to earn 6th in a very tight 800 race. Jeff Willis, rounding into form despite having less then 2 weeks of running under his belt due to injury, finished 4th and he, Perlow, Robert Long and Moshe raced the 4 x 400 to a season best time. In the 10k on saturday, Aaron Beim PR'd en route to a 6th place performance while Mike Lovenheim and Albert Lee also raced to their fastest times. Matt Logalbo finished his college running career with a nice PR in the 5000.

Little Three's - April 22


(Student Article)
Both teams headed to Wesleyan for the annual Little Three Championships and battled both rivals and the cold rain. The men finished second to Williams, while the women finished 3rd. The men were led by victories in the 400 (Jared Moshe), 800 (Bruce Perlow), 110 Hurdles (Pat Hayes), 4 x 400 Relay (Moshe, Perlow, Long and Willis). Jeff Willis returned to action after a long layoff due to an injury and finished a strong 2nd in the 800, while Ben Kozyak and Jake Cooper both had PR's in the same race. Mike Morris just missed qualifying for NCAA's in the steeplechase in route to finishing 2nd. The 5000 was a big event for us as Aaron Beim, Mike Lovenheim, Alex Lenkoski and Rusty Ryan all set PR's despite the chilly conditions. Greg Baker had a strong day in the sprints as he finished 2nd in the 100, ran a new PR in the 200 and led off the second place 4 x 100.

The women were led by a 1-2-3 sweep in the 1500 by Dini Pineda, Courtney Jennings and Diana Rancourt, while also getting victories from Nicole Campbell in the 200 and Long Jump, and Katherine Leahey in the triple jump. Emily Ratcliff finished 2nd in the javelin in her first attempt at the event; Ali Stahl finished 2nd in the long jump, the 4x100 team of Stahl, Ford, Shei and Campbell finished 2nd; Annie Perez had a strong race in the 800 as did Becky Woo; Kate Hamill had a great 400 Hurdle race as well as a great leadoff leg in the 4 x 400 Relay; Katie Famous ran a strong race in the 5k in her first true race of the year due to the MCAT's; Jenna Obelsky had a big day in the throwing events.

Williams Relays - April 15


(Student Article)
Who would have thought that the best weather in New England would have been at Williams but we were blessed with warmth and sun - which may have been a little too much for some of the distance runners, though everyone else took full advantage of it. While the name of the meet would make one think of a relay only meet, there was a full slate of individual events as well as a number of different relays. For the men, the highlight may have been the Weight Men's Relay as the team of Pat McGee, Pay Hayes, Josh Ahearn and Greg O'Neill sprinted to victory in the 4 x 100. The sprint medley team of Greg Baker, Jared Moshe, Robert Long and Bruce Perlow not only won the event but also established a new school record. Jared Moshe and Robert Long went 1-2 in the 400; Perlow finished 3rd in the 800, Derrell Wright was 2nd in the long jump; Greg and Josh both had PR's in the shot put and season bests in the other throwing events to go along with their fine sprinting performance;Mike Morris used his patented big kick finish to earn 4th in the 1500; Greg Baker ran a season best in the 100m to lead the sprint crew to some fast times and Brian Gillis shaved another 15 seconds off his PR in the steeplechase.

Nicole Campbell had another big day as she stamped her name in the record book 3 more times. In her one legal jump in the triple jump she showed that the 40 foot barrier was no longer mythical as she topped the mark in her first jump of the year to easily win that event, as well as winning the long jump and the 100 - in a new school record. She then led off the school record breaking sprint medley relay consisting of herslef, Amie Shei, Kate Hamill and Annie Perez. Molly Burnett ran uncontested in the 3000 to notch an easy win in a new PR time. The distance medley relay of Diana Rancourt, Noelle Noyes, Laurel Kilgour and Sarah Heard also erased the old school record from 14 years ago with their 3rd place run. Emily Lobsenz battled the heat to finish 2nd in the 5000, while Emily Dubinsky finished 4th in her first run in the 10,000. Diana Rancourt and Noelle Noyes both had strong races in the 800m; Amie Shei ran her fastest time of the year in the 400 to earn 4th; Jenna Obelsky had a great day in the shot put with her 30+foot throw; Julia Lipez won her section in the 3000 with a strong finishing kick.

Smith Invite - April 8


(Student Article)
Wind, wind and more wind! Wind so gusty that it blew the high jump pads up into the air and into the field goal post snapping the post. Let's just say that fast times were going to be nearly impossible to achieve on this day. The highlight for the men would certainly have been our newcomer to track and field, Derrell Wright who not only won both the long and triple jumps in very difficult jumping conditions but jumped further then any Amherst jumper has done in quite a few years. Mike Morris started his steeplechase season in victorious fashion as he raced by himself into the wind to an easy win while Brian Gillis, despite the wind, PR'd by nearly 30 seconds, going under the 11 minute mark for the first time. The 4 x 100 team of Greg baker, Ok Ugwonali, Jared Moshe and Kevin Kennard held off a late chagre by Springfield to take top honors Greg O'Neill finished second in the shot put with a new PR throw, Jared Moshe won a convincing 200 into a stiff headwind, Bruce Perlow finished 2nd and 3rd in the 1500 and 800, Robert Long finished 2nd in the 400, Pat Hayes and Ok Ugwonali placed 2nd and 3rd in the high hurdles.

The women had several wins on saturday - the 4 x 100 relay started things off with a victory as Ali Stahl, Kristie Ford, Amie Shei and Nicole Campbell teamed up for the first time this year. Nicole Campbell also won the 100, and was 2nd in the 200. Katie Scangos, in preparation for the World Triathlon Championships in Australie in 2 weeks used the meet as a practice as she rode her bike for 2 hours right before her race, hopped off the bike onto the track and won the 3000m in a 1-4 Amherst sweep - Dini Pineda, Emily Lobsenz and Sarah Heard. Courtney Jennings and Molly Burnett went 2- 3 in the 1500, Annie Perez finished 2nd in the 800, Alison Dimon was 2nd in the 5000, Ali Stahl had a great long jump as she pushed past the 16 foot barrier for the first time this season to finish 3rd.

Bantam Invite - April 1


(Student Article)
Under perfect weather conditions, the team got the outdoor season started at the Bantam Invite at Trinity. For the men, Aaron Beim and Mike Lovcnheim got things going with PR's in the 10,000. The 400 duo of Robert Long and Jared Moshe ran within 1/100th of each other in the 400 to open up the season in quick fashion. Mike Morris ran to a new outdoor PR in the 5000 to place 2nd. Bruce Perlow and Nathaniel Robinson finished 3rd and 5th in a very competitive 1500, while Ben Kozyak and Matt Logalbo had very strong races at the same distance. Pat Hayes finished 2nd in the high hurdles; Brian Gillis ran to a new PR in the 5000; Derrell Wright competing in his first track meet jumped extremely well in the long and triple jumps - after only 2 days of jumping previously. Greg Oneill finished 3rd in the shot put, while Josh Ahearn PR'd in the same event.

Like the men, the 10,000 was the first event of the day and was a great start as Katie Scangos and EMily Lobsenz placed 3rd and 4th with excellent season opening times while Cecily Brewer and Natalie Brumblay (in her first track race) both qualified for New England's in the same race. Nicole Campbell, taking a break from jumping for the meet, placed 2nd in the 100, 200 and the 4 x 400. Laurel Kilgour and Diana Rancourt placed 3 and 4 in the 800, with Noelle Noyes also placing in her first race back from injury. Sarah Heard, running her first 1500, won her section with a big kick over the last 300. Dini Pineda led a strong Amherst contingent in the first section of the 1500 running a strong opening 1500. Alison Dimon led the 3000 group with her 3rd place run. Ali Stahl placed 6th in the long jump with a strong jump, while Katherine Leahey placed in the high jump with a good season opener.