Over the last few months, the Georgetown track and field team has been working tirelessly to prove that they are a force to be reckoned with. Distance runners have run dozens of miles each week, while sprinters have focused on their technique and strength. This past weekend‘s Penn State National Invitational was the Hoyas’ first real test to see where they stood against the competition. Facing programs from schools such as Syracuse, University of Virgina, Villanova, and Penn State, the Hoyas held their own.
Chris Kinney, a sophomore hurdler, proved he belonged with the best, finishing fifth in the 60-meter hurdles, though he seemed less than impressed with his showing.
“I messed up,” Kinney said. “I wish I did better.”
Coach Shelia Burrell, the sprints and hurdles coach, isn’t discouraged by the Hoyas’ performance.
“We have a nice core of kids right now that are motivated,” Burrell said. “We have five of the top ten hurdlers in the Big East. We have runners consistently running PRs [personal records]. We are definitely ahead of where we were last year. Everyone is ready to roll.”
The same could be said of the distance runners. Freshmen Emily Infeld ran a bold race, winning the 1000-meter race, while breaking the facility and meet records in the process.
Teammate Renee Tomlin also broke the facility and meet records in the same race, demonstrating the depth of the Georgetown team.
Coach Chris Miltenberg, the women’s distance coach, was not surprised by his squad’s impressive times.
“Our women had a great meet at Penn State this past weekend,” Miltenberg said. “We use these early season meets to really focus on just racing and competing hard. Emily Infeld and Renee Tomlin’s performance in the 1k is a great example of that. They focused on just competing hard, and the result was the fast times they ran.”
The men’s distance squad followed suit, showing why the Georgetown men are ranked 21st in the nation. Liam Boylan-Pett ran valiantly in the men’s one-mile, breaking the four minute mark with his 3:59.40 finish, becoming the seventh Hoya in history to eclipse that mark. He also nabbed an automatic bid to the NCAA championships by breaking the auto mark for the mile of 3:59.50. In the same race, Sandy Roberts broke the provisional mark for NCAAs (4:04.00) with his 4:01.21 finish.
Earning qualifying marks for their events this early in the season bodes well for the Hoyas. Despite their strong start, though, the Hoyas are hungry for more action and willhead to the Armory Invitational in New York next week, where they will encounter what is expected to be higher level of competition, including track and field’s powerhouse teams such as Oregon, Texas A&M, LSU, and Texas.
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