INDOOR TRACK & FIELD TEAMS OPEN SEASON AT BROWN SATURDAY

December 3, 2009

INDOOR TRACK TEAMS KICK OFF SEASON SATURDAY

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Brown University’s indoor track facility has been home to the Bulldogs for the past couple of weeks for training for the upcoming 2009-10 indoor season. This Saturday, don’t blame the Bulldogs if it feels almost like a home meet.

The Bulldogs, led by third-year coach Stephanie Reilly, will kick off the season at the Brown University Invitational.  Reilly will welcome the return of several key veterans plus look to the addition of several talented newcomers to carry the way this winter.

Senior Alex Engel (Spencer, Mass.) and junior Thomas O’Connor (Westwood, Mass.) look to lead the way for the men in the sprints and middle distance.  Engel, the owner of Bryant’s indoor record in the 500 meters (1:05.19) and member of the school’s best 4x400 indoor relay team (3:18.49) is ready for a standout senior season.  Especially after a breakout meet at last year’s NEC Championships.

Engel placed fourth in the prelims of the 400 meters at the NEC Championships in a team’s best season time of 48.84 and will look to place in the 55m, 200m.  O’Connor turned in a pair of top times in the 55m, placing seventh at URI in the 55m (6.75) and finished fourth in the prelims at the NEC’s with a best mark of 21.94.

Anthony Monteiro (Leominster, Mass.), Michael DiBella (Upper Saddle River, NJ), Ryan Busby (Derry, NH) and John Mitton (North Reading, Mass.) are back in shape and looking to get the season off to a strong start.

Chris Brida (Southampton, Mass.) and Andrew Fitzgerald (New Hartford, Conn.) will compete in the jumps. 

The women’s team will look to replace Justine Douvadjian who held the top times in four events but returners Amy Hutchinson (Exeter, R.I.), Joanna Chanaj (Peabody, Mass.), Katie Pelletier (Berwick, Maine), Kim Warner (Shrewsbury, Mass.) and Jennifer Denise (East Patchogue, N.Y.). 

Hutchinson posted the team’s second-best time in the 55 meters (10.27) while Chanaj was right there with Douvadjian in the 200m, turning in a season’s-best of 29.30 at the University of Rhode Island last January and third-best time in the 300 meters of 46.63 at Brown in last year’s meet.

Warner was right there as well in the 300 meters at 44.66 at Brown and 1:25.01 n the 500 meters. 

Denise, along with Kat Ragone (Bourne, Mass.) and freshman Deirdre Doyle (Carlow, Ireland) are all coming off excellent cross country seasons and should help out in the middle distance and distance events.

Watch for both Hutchinson and Chanaj to have a big season in the jumps.

The Bulldogs will compete next weekend at Harvard before heading into exam and the holiday break.