The Hoyas’ track team continued to find its footing this past weekend at the Colonial Relays as the outdoor season progresses. Friday night held the open races followed by the relays on Saturday. Overall, Georgetown performed very well, but the Hoyas focused on familiarizing themselves on the outdoor track rather than concentrating on running their best times.

The women’s mid-distance runners dominated their heats as graduate student Christine Whalen placed third in the 800-meter with a time of 2:08.88. Freshman Rachel Schneider followed up her teammate, placing in sixth with a time of 2:10.41 with graduate student Avril Ogrodnick close behind in seventh with a time of 2:10.97. These are the fastest season-opening times for all three runners. They foreshadow a great season ahead as this year’s Hoyas have shown improvement and progression throughout the season in previous years.

The distance runners continued the strong performance in the 1500m. Sophomore Lauren Borduin led the Hoyas, placing fifth with a time of 4:29.84. It was a great start for Borduin as it took her all of last season to run the time she completed last weekend. Recently recovering from a cold week, senior Lauren Gregory ran a solid 4:30.87 and placed sixth. Both she and graduate student Lise Ogrodnick put themselves in the thick of the race. Ogrodnick placed seventh with a time of 4:31.87, the fastest that she has ever opened the outdoor season.

In the men’s 1500m, the Hoyas showed true resilience after undergoing an intense week of training. The Hoyas placed second, third and fourth with senior Alex Bean running a 3:47.14, freshman Dylan Sorenson racing a 3:47.82 and graduate student Alex Mason finishing with a time of 3:47.83.

“We had a tough week of training, and they were by no means rested. Overall, as a group it was probably our best group effort,” Head Coach Patrick Henner said.

Not to be overshadowed by the mid-distance and distance runners, the Hoya sprinters once again demonstrated their merit. Representing the women, freshman Amanda Kimbers tied the school record with her 100m dash performance. She ran an 11.71 and placed third in the finals, demonstrating her potential. Graduate student Kenny Mitchell won the men’s 100m with a time of 10.51 in the finals. Freshmen Christian Tobias and Kadeem Hunter both illustrated Georgetown’s depth by placing third and sixth, respectively, with times of 10.90 and 11.02 in the finals of the 100m dash.

In the relays, the men’s 4x800m team ran an impressive race and placed second. They focused on getting comfortable racing outdoors again, but still managed to run a 7:30.07 this early in the season. Junior Toby Ulm led the first leg with a time of 1:53, handing off the baton and the lead. Senior John Maloy ran the second split with a time of 1:55, followed by Sorenson, who had an exciting weekend and ran a 1:51 flat. It was an exceptional time for a freshman, but speed demon Bean stole the show and anchored a 1:49.

The men’s 4x400m relay team placed third with a time of 3:12.95. Senior Danny Harris opened up while graduate student Chris Taylor had his best split ever with a time of 48.7. Sophomore Theon O’Connor also contributed a great leg, but sophomore Kamryn Austin had the best leg, timing in at a low 47.

The women also gave a solid outing in their 4x800m relay. Placing third with a time of 8:53.99, Gregory led off the first leg and handed off right with the leaders, but Borduin moved the Hoyas up to the front. Schneider kept the momentum flowing by opening up a lot of ground in her last 150 meters.

“Both Borduin and Schneider went out very aggressively and put themselves out there to win it,” Assistant Coach Chris Miltenberg said.

Unfortunately, Avril Ogrodnick got into a little trouble in the last leg of the relay but kept her composure as Seton Hall and Villanova both came on strong.

Other Highlights:

• Freshman Emily Jones competed in the World Junior Championships in Poland a few weeks ago. She placed an impressive 41st overall and fourth among her American teammates. This race will only further aid her in her experience competing at an international level in the future.
• Senior Amanda Walsh ran well in the 5000m, placing fourth. She did a fantastic job of taking chances and committing to staying in the middle to ensure that she kept herself in position to win. She ran a time of 17:05.58.
• Junior Ayalew Taye and senior Levi Miller, who have both recently been struggling, are beginning to get back on track. They both raced in the 1500m as well. Miller was recently diagnosed with low iron levels, which has affected his ability to run at his usual level. But his strong performance in the 1500m shows that he is steadily improving.
• Junior Toby Ulm opened with a bang, winning his 400m hurdles with a time of 51.42. Unfortunately junior hurdler Chris Kinney had a tough week and wasn’t rested enough to perform at his best at the Colonial Relays.