Track and Field Travels to William and Mary for Colonial Relays

4/3/2014 8:44:00 PM | Men's Track and Field

By: TBD

Colonial Relays website

LEWISBURG, Pa. – After a windy, rainy day last weekend at the UMBC Big Dawg Invitational, the Bucknell track and field team is hoping for sunnier weather when it travels to Virginia to compete in the prestigious Colonial Relays, hosted by William and Mary. In addition, a small group of student-athletes will make the short trip to Susquehanna University to compete in the Crusader Classic on Saturday. This is an important weekend for the Bison as they prepare to ramp up the outdoor season, and while they proved that bad conditions can't stop them from performing well, this weekend they will be further tested by a slew of strong competitors.

"After a solid rust buster last week, we are looking for a nice team performance at William and Mary,” commented head coach Kevin Donner. “We will be represented in every individual event and all the relays, and are looking to score some good points and place high as a team."

The men's team, which finished in second at the Colonial Relays last year with 113 points, seems primed to improve upon their standing this season if last weekend's performance is any indication. Among the top runners in Baltimore was freshman Jacob Ashkettle, who ran the fastest time of the meet in the 400m, clocking in at 49.99. Other top finishers for the men at UMBC include sophomore John Westwood and senior Tyler Erhard. Westwood finished first in the 800m, while Erhard, who will be competing in the 3K steeple this weekend, claimed the top spot in the 1500m. Junior Christian Lupica will be back in action this weekend in both the 100m hurdles and the 400m intermediate hurdles, and will be joined by junior Matt Deysher and sophomore Grant Reynolds in those events.

The Bison will also be well-represented in the field events, as junior Jack Fellows, the winner of the discus at UMBC, will be competing in three throwing events this weekend - the shot put, the discuss and the hammer throw. Fellows will be joined by junior Brandon Reynolds, junior Brian Monahan and senior Nigel Robinson in all three events. Javelin throwers Pat Mulrooney and Laddie Trees will also be competing this weekend, which is important for the Bison as the javelin is a highly competitive event in the outdoor season.

On the women's side, the Bison will be looking to improve upon last year's eighth place finish, and the weekend is looking to be a great outing for the squad. Senior Emily Waksmunski ran an impressive 2:18.06 to finish first in the 800 last weekend, but will race in the 1500m at the Colonial Relays, while classmate Hana Casalnova, who won the longer event at UMBC, will take over in the shorter race. Sophomore Jenn Silvestri will be competing in the 100m hurdles, the 400m intermediate hurdles and the 4x400 meter relay, and will be joined in both hurdles events by fellow sophomore Chrissy Haney.

In the field events, senior Alyssa Cardillo, the defending Patriot League champion in the long jump, will be looking to improve upon her winning performance from last weekend, while sophomores Abigail Brundage and Sophia Nnadi will strive for far throws in the shot put, the discuss and the hammer throw. Both athletes have traditionally performed very well within the Patriot League and this weekend will be important to set them up for the remainder of the season.

Action at the College of William and Mary begins on Thursday afternoon at 4 p.m., and continues on Friday and Saturday. Friday's running events will begin at 8:30am, with field events to follow at 9 a.m., while on Saturday all events will get started at 10 a.m. Links to live results and live video will be available on the track and field schedule pages on BucknellBison.com.