Track & Field: Teams kick off year with promising starts

The men’s and women’s track and field teams opened their seasons confidently Saturday at the New Year’s Invitational, breaking records and snagging victories across the board.

The Tigers hosted 11 schools — including in-state rivals Rutgers, Rider and The College of New Jersey — in Jadwin Gymnasium. After winning 16 of the 25 events last year, Princeton had a lot to live up to. Fortunately, the Tigers had no problems living up to those expectations.

It came as no surprise that star junior Austin Hollimon opened his season with a flash. One meet into the season, Hollimon has already managed to break his previous 300m dash time, a Princeton record, by .20 seconds. The sprinter clocked in at 33.68 seconds. Hollimon is no stranger to the Ivy League champion’s podium – he has earned titles in both outdoor and indoor sprint events and was even an NCAA regional qualifier last year –  and with performances such as Saturday’s, he can expect to be a top contender in 2011.

The day’s most exciting performances came from freshmen. The men’s team graduated 14 seniors last year, and 11 more will graduate in June. However, with freshman athletes such as Tom Hopkins, Imar Jarrett and Damon McLean, Princeton’s program need not worry. Hopkins finished immediately behind Hollimon in the 300m dash with a time of 33.82 seconds, giving the upperclassmen a bit of competition in the race. Junior Kashif Smith placed fifth in the event at 35.75. Jarrett claimed the highest place among the Princeton athletes with his 1.90-meter high jump, while McLean’s 7.22-meter long jump earned the newcomer top honors.

Junior Derek Hynes finished first among college athletes — the meet allowed unattached entries — with a 4.80-meter pole vault. Sophomore Richard Sheldon took second place at the 60m hurdle competition, finishing with a time of 8.25 seconds.        Smith was the only sprinter to finish the 60m dash under 7 seconds in the preliminary round, earning himself one of eight spots in the final. Smith shaved .06 seconds off his preliminary time in the finals, finishing in at 6.91 seconds and earning first place in the event.

Coming in after Smith was Junior Ivan Charbonneau, who ran the 60m dash in 7.07 seconds, freshman Brian Mills with a time of 7.1o seconds and sophomore Jason Reagor at 7.17 seconds.

Senior George Abyad and junior Patrick Park took third and fourth, respectively, in the shot put. Abyad threw 16.18 meters, while Park threw 15.57 meters. With these throws — both far from each athlete’s personal best — earning high places, Princeton can expect strong performances from its shot-putters throughout the season.

The throwers on the women’s side were impressive as well. Senior Thanithia Billings broke Princeton’s previous record by six inches with her weight throw of 19.21 meters. The throw earned Billings first place in the weight throw. After earning first-team All-Ivy League last year, Billings seems well on her way to being just as successful this season.

Senior Emma Ruggiero’s 18.30-meter weight throw took second place.

Billings also dominated the day’s shot put competitions, taking first place with a 14.32-meter throw. Senior Isabell von Loga, whose shot put fell at 13.78 meters, took second place.

The women’s freshmen also made a name for themselves at their first collegiate meet. Freshman Imani Oliver claimed first in the triple jump, at 11.72 meters. Freshman Kristin Smoot’s time of 1 minute, 35.08 seconds earned her first in the 600m. Freshman Molly Higgins led a sweep of the top four spots in the 1,000m race with a time of 3:01.01. Freshman Kacie O’Neill trailed Higgins by four seconds.

The Tigers’ younger talent did not end with their freshmen. Sophomore Tory Worthen won the pole vault competition by clearing 3.90 meters.

The victory was only the most recent in a long line of accomplishments for Worthen, who participated in the NCAA outdoor track and field competitions last spring and was named first-team All-Ivy League at both the indoor and outdoor Heptagonal Championships last year.

She currently holds the Princeton record in indoor pole vaulting. Worthen is also a staff writer for The Daily Princetonian.

Junior Eileen Moran won both the 60m and the 300m dashes Saturday. Her 60m time, 7.72 seconds, managed to outpace the rest of the event’s 49 participants. Moran’s 300m time of 40.36 seconds beat her previous best of 40.62 seconds set at the New York Road Runners Meet last spring.

The Tigers finished second in the women’s 4x400m relay, posting a time of 4:00.73. The relay team was comprised of junior Sarah Houtmann, sophomore Joie Hand, sophomore Greta Feldman and freshman Kristin Smoot.

The women’s team will  take a bit of time off before their next competition. On Jan. 7 at the Princeton Quad Meet in Jadwin Gymnasium, the women’s team will once again roar back into action. The men will compete a day later, traveling to Annapolis, Md., to face off against Navy.