On Saturday, the Rensselaer indoor track and field team traveled to Boston, Mass. to compete in a meet hosted by MIT. Both the women’s and the men’s team earned third place among their opponents: Williams College, MIT, and Westfield State.
The women’s team scored a total of 132 points, with contributions coming from athletes in every event. In the 600 meter run, sophomore Alysia Evanitsky not only scored second place for Rensselaer, but also set a new school record with a time of 1:45.44. Other outstanding performances were achieved by junior Allison Benson and sophomore Jess Pearson in the pole vault. Both Benson and Pearson provisionally qualified for the NCAA’s with respective vaults of 11’ 1” and 10’ 7”.
The men also had several exciting performances contributing to their team score of 147.5 points. Sophomore Joe Otto set a new school record for the 600 meter run with a time of 1:25.02, earning second place overall. Junior Derek McGough captured two first place finishes, one in the 55 meter dash with a time of 6.60 seconds and the other in the long jump with a mark of 22’ 5.25”. Fellow junior Dwaine Alleyne won both the 55 meter hurdles, in 7.95 seconds, and the triple jump, with 45’ 8.25”.
The progressing season appears to be an exciting one, as the individual performances continue to improve. Next weekend, the team will have another chance to compete in an invitational at West Point.
