Competing with a limited squad due to sickness, the women's indoor track team was still able to enjoy considerable success over winter break.
The women placed first of five teams in the New England Challenge Cup on Jan. 16. They scored 219 points, beating second place finisher Rhode Island College by 33 points.
At the meet, the Bears posted nine individual wins, with a key performance by triple-jumper Brittany Grovey '06. Her jump of 39-6 missed the Brown field house record by one inch, and qualified her for the ECAC Championships.
Also posting first place performances in the meet were Jaylon White '05 in the 55-meter dash, Smita Gupta '08 in the 1,000-meter run and the 4x400-meter relay squad of co-captain Kelly Powell '06, Laura Snizek '07, Fara Kitton '05 and Natasha Barrett '07. Julie Kosmosinski '05 posted her first collegiate track win with a victory in the 3,000-meter run.
"The NECC was something we were pleased about. Naja Ferjan ('07) and a few others on the team were sick, but we still managed a win," said Head Coach Robert Johnson.
On Jan. 21, the women competed at the Go Rhody Invitational in Kingston, R.I. The team took second of nine teams in the competition, bested only by the University of Connecticut, 201.50-144.67.
Johnson was pleased with the team's effort, citing the performances of Grovey in the triple jump, Tiffany Chang '08 in the pole vault, and co-captain Jill Lynch '05 and Jennifer Donahue '05 in throws as the day's highlights.
This past Saturday, the Bears traveled to Cambridge, Mass. to compete against league rivals Harvard and Cornell. The women placed second, beating Harvard but losing to the perennially powerful Big Red by 38 points.
Ashley Wall '05 scored points in both the long jump and the high jump, taking first in the long jump with a mark of 5.52 meters. The Bears dominated the pole vault, with Chang clearing 3.45 meters for first place and Keely Marsh '08 and Janea Russ '06 placing third and fourth, respectively. In the triple jump, Grovey again took first place, while teammate Dominique Bosa-Edwards '05 placed second. Lynch and Donahue performed well in the throws for the second time in as many meets. Ferjan took top honors in the 800-meter run and Lauren Hale '07 took third in the 60-meter dash.
Johnson hopes for even stronger performances from his team for the rest of the season, mentioning the improvement of the previously sick Ferjan, Powell, and Akilah King '08.
"At this point in the season, we're really coming together as a team. Our biggest weaknesses are in the hurdles and middle distance because we don't quite have the depth we need there. We have the people to get it done, it's just a matter of putting it together," Johnson said.
The Bears will return to the University of Rhode Island for a dual meet this Saturday.
