Introduction

The Rensselaer men’s and women’s indoor track and field teams kept themselves busy over the three-day weekend as they competed in the Deneault Invitational on Saturday and came back to contend in the NYSCTC Pentathlon on Sunday, both in Ithaca, N.Y.

At the non-scoring event on Saturday, the men were led by senior Joe Otto and sophomore Kemar Brown. Otto, a co-captain, finished second in the 500-meter run with a time of 1:06.90.

Brown tallied the only RPI victory on either side on Saturday, winning the 60-meter dash in a time of 7.01 seconds. Brown’s efforts earned him Co-Track Performer of the Week honors from the Liberty League.

The men’s squad also enjoyed a third place finish in the 4x800 meter relay.

For the women, senior co-captain Alysia Evanitsky, sophomore Jen Dias, and freshman Marion Albert fronted the winning effort.

Albert recorded a third place finish in the 500-meter run with a time of 1:21.23. The time was also good enough for first place among strictly Division III competitors in the event. The Liberty League bestowed the freshman with the Rookie of the Week award.

Dias and Evanitsky finished second and third, respectively, in the 400-meter dash in times of 1:00.29 and 1:01.00.

The upstart Dias also came in fourth in the 200-meter dash with a time of 26.55 seconds. Both of Dias’ performances were best among her Division III contemporaries in the respective events. The Liberty League also gave Dias Track Performer of the Week accolades for her weekend accomplishments.

On Sunday, four Engineers battled in the New York State Indoor Pentathlon. Trevor Tersmette, Okechuka Ekwuabu, and David Addiss represented the men; while Heather Maffei took to the field for the women.

Tersmette, a senior co-captain, won the event with a school record 3,577 points. En route to the victory, Tersmette finished first in the 55-meter hurdles in a time of 7.98 seconds and in the high jump with a bound of 1.99 meters, third in the long jump with a leap of 6.46 meters, fourth in the 1000-meter run with a time of 2:51.14, and sixth in the shot put with a toss of 10.68 meters. For his record-setting day, Liberty League officials named him Co-Field Performer of the Week.

Ekwuabu, a sophomore, compiled 2,956 points on the day which was good enough for eighth place. Addiss, a freshman, amassed 2,666 points and finished thirteenth overall.

On the women’s side, Maffei, a senior, totaled 2,335 points for tenth place.

Morin recognized nationally

The College Sports Information Directors of America have selected senior co-captain Amy Morin of the RPI women’s basketball team as a member of the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District 1 College Division Women’s Basketball third team.

Morin, a starting guard for the Red Hawks, has managed a 3.50 GPA while dual-majoring in biology and psychology. Her many academic accolades include being on the RPI Dean’s List, making several Liberty League All-Academic teams, and winning the Emily Roebling Alumni Scholarship.

Morin has also been involved in several volunteer activities including Walk for the Cure, Toys for Tots, and the American Heart Walk. She has also coached the Rhode Island Breakers AAU basketball team since 2003.

On the hardwood, Morin averaged 5.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.1 steals per game for the 2004-2005 Red Hawks.

Duke University’s School of Medicine has accepted the Coventry, R.I., native for matriculation in the fall of 2005.

Ski Team enjoys big weekend

The Rensselaer men’s and women’s ski teams welcomed their competitors to Labrador Mountain this past weekend to take part in the RPI Invitational.

The men placed second in both the giant slalom and slalom, en route to finishing third overall in the USCSA’s Adirondack division and earning a bid to the Mid-East Regionals next weekend.

Freshman Brian Morgan and sophomore Ryan Koppes led the way for the men, coming in fifth in the giant slalom and slalom, respectively.

Morgan and Koppes were aided by freshman teammates Nick Maniscalco and John Williams, who finished eleventh in the Giant Slalom and ninth in the Slalom, respectively.

On the women’s side, junior Casey Edgeton and sophomore Abby Eldridge spurred their squad to a third place finish in the Slalom. Edgeton came in second overall in the event, and Eldridge finished sixth.

The Mid-East Regionals will take place next weekend in Waterville Valley, N.H.

Snowshoe fever

RPI students Kate Best, Maggie Masella, and Emily Meacham have qualified for the Nike national snowshoeing competition. The prestigious event, held in Anchorage, Alaska, is only open to the top five qualifiers in each age group.

The “RPI Snow Angels” have been competing in local snow shoeing events nearly every weekend this semester and have also qualified for the 5k event at the Empire State Games in Lake Placid, N.Y.