2003 Women's Track Outlook

11/29/02

- The women’s track and field program begins the 2003 season looking to pick up where it left off last spring after winning the Colonial Athletic Association Championships for the third time since 1999 and finishing 10th at the outdoor Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championships. Featuring several athletes who competed at ECACs, three runners with NCAA provisional marks, four school record-holders and a 23rd-place team finish at the NCAA cross country championships, the upcoming season holds the potential to be the Tribe’s most successful season ever, as the squad looks to secure the CAA title once again.

W&M boasts a coaching staff full of experience and accolades. Director of Track and Field Dan Stimson, who also works with the men’s program, and head coach Pat Van Rossum combine for 32 years of experience at the College, where they have coached 47 indoor and outdoor track and field and cross country All-Americans, 25 teams to CAA titles, 25 conference athletes of the year and have earned 12 CAA Coach of the Year awards. Last spring, Van Rossum was honored as the conference’s coach of the year for the third time in four years after leading his team to a conference title and coaching three individual conference medallists. Assistant coaches Emil Davis and Viet Do return to aid Stimson and Van Rossum, while Beth Nealon begins her first season as an assistant after graduating from W&M last May. All three assistant coaches were standout student-athletes; Davis and Nealon at William and Mary and Do at Columbia University. Both Tribe graduates are currently on the all-time top performers list.

The Tribe enjoys a well-balanced squad featuring abundant talent in the running and field events. A varied schedule brings about diverse competition, allowing the top athletes to face strong opposition, while the younger performers who are continuing to develop are able to compete in meets of a developmental caliber. This variety-rich schedule is designed to encourage optimal development as a student-athlete.

Multi Events
For the past decade, W&M has produced some very good pentathletes and heptathletes, evidenced by multiple All-East performances. This year looks to be among the best ever. Seniors Alarice Cesareo and Lora Meekins both have earned All-East accolades, which give them great experience for this year. Cesareo and newcomer Bonnie Meekins, a high school All-American and Lora’s sister, have already qualified for the 2003 ECAC Championship in their first pentathlon of the season, prior to the New Year.

Hurdles
Cesareo, Lora Meekins, freshman Kelly Knight and sophomore Kara Snyder will compete in the hurdles. Snyder overcame nagging injuries to finish second in the conference last outdoor season in the 100 meter hurdles, missing the ECAC mark by less than two tenths of a second. However, expectations are high for her, as her freshman campaign was highlighted by setting a school record in the 60m hurdles and achieving an ECAC mark. Cesareo finished fourth at last year’s conference meet, while Lora Meekins finished seventh. Each was a member of the winning shuttle hurdle relay at last year’s Colonial Relays. Knight comes in as an accomplished high school hurdler and will challenge her teammates to improve. Snyder and fellow sophomore Katie Andres will compete in the 400 hurdles. Snyder finished fourth in that event at last year’s conference championships, and Andres looks much improved.

High Jump
Anne Larmore followed her first-place finish at CAAs in the high jump by earning All-East honors with an eighth-place finish at ECACs. Adding to her many accomplishments, she received Academic All-America honors last year for her performance in the classroom. ECAC qualifier Lora Meekins will contribute in the event, while her sister Bonnie, who was the Virginia State AAA high school champion in the high jump and long jump and ranked among the national top-10 amongst scholastic high jumpers, will be a major force in the conference and region. Sophomores Cari Tusing and Amanda Gomaa will add depth to the event. Although the Tribe lost a talented jumper after graduating Beth Nealon last year, her knowledge of track and field events will help the athletes improve, as she remains in Williamsburg as an assistant coach.

Pole Vault
Junior Charlotte LaRoche leads the pole vaulting contingent as the current school record holder, reigning conference champion, and ECAC medallist, barely missing the qualifying mark for NCAAs. Junior Ashlea Barrett, who achieved a PR (11’0”) at the first pre-holiday meet of the 2003 season, along with senior Jenn Barnes and newcomer Allison Muth, all vault in the 11’ range, and with a little improvement, could be strong conference and regional level competitors.

Horizontal Jumps
The Tribe looks to improve in the horizontal jumps and will rely heavily on the versatile Alarice Cesareo and the Meekins sisters to compete in the events. Newcomers Sarah McHale, Erica Johnson and Kelly Knight could also contribute in the long jump and triple jump. Sophomore Naomi Mattos and sophomore Rebecca Pucheu will look to continue to improve and contribute in both events.

Sprints
The sprint events will rely on Erica Johnson and Naomi Mattos. Johnson brings several high school honors to Williamsburg, including a seventh-place finish in the 100 at the Virginia A High School meet. Mattos finished eighth in the 200 and sixth in the 400 at last year’s conference championship meet. Cesareo, Kristin Monaco and Kate Norako will help anchor the sprint squad. Look for Snyder, Knight, Cesareo, Bonnie Meekins and Norako to combine to run the 4x100 relay. Senior assistant captain Meghan Kober and juniors Stephanie Blake and junior Rachel Sigsbury will race the longer sprint events for the Tribe.

Throws
The throwing events stand as a strength for the Tribe, showing the complete team emphasis on the W&M women’s squad. The Tribe celebrates the return of two solid sophomore throwers in Cassidy Harris and Ayanna Jones. Jones took top honors in the conference in the shot put with Harris finishing second, for a 1-2 freshman finish. Harris was the runner-up in the discus, while Jones finished just one spot behind, in third place. Both Harris and Jones earned all-conference honors in each event for their efforts. Harris achieved an ECAC qualifying mark in the shot put and finished 16th at the meet, while Jones barely missed the qualifying mark in that event. Additionally, Harris competed at Junior Nationals in California this past summer. Freshmen Liz Hager and Lindsay Pearson are expected to add depth to the throwing events. Hager, a state high school champion, will be the lone Tribe javelin thrower for the year.

Middle Distance
Middle distance events feature several returning and experienced runners who are training specifically for the middle distance events. Kristen Ryan, who placed fourth in the conference 800m last year and has been a relay mainstay, and Stephanie Blake, who has been All-East, will lead the way for W&M. Meghan Kober, Abhi Rao, Rachel Sigsbury and Kari Hill will add solid depth to the middle distance corps. Lara Toscani and sophomores Erin Masterson and Ruth Loyer will step down from the longer distances to race in the middle distances. All have traveled to ECAC meets and have strong experience. Additionally, newcomer Lauren Heron, a national high school runner-up in the mile, should make an immediate impact. Freshmen Lydia Malley, Loren Cutright and Casey Feiling will add depth to the middle distance events after having competed at the state level in high school. Sophomore Emilie Dubois and freshman Shelly Knewstep will round out the squad.

Distance
With several returning distance aces, three of which achieved NCAA provisional marks last season, the longer running events are expected to be among the strongest for the College. Ali Henderson, a 2002 cross country All-American, leads the distance events as the school record holder and an NCAA provisional qualifier in both the 10,000m and the 3,000m steeplechase. Henderson finished fourth in the steeplechase at ECACs and broke the then meet record in her second-place finish at CAAs. Finishing seventh at the Penn Relays in the 10,000m, expectations are high for the junior in this 2002-03 season.

Senior Cheryl Bauer and junior Maura McMahon fared well at CAAs and ECACs last year as well. McMahon finished second in the 5,000m at conferences, second in the 10,000m at ECACs and achieved an NCAA provisional time in the 10,000m in her 12th-place finish at the Penn Relays. Bauer finished third in the 1,500 at the conference championships and achieved an NCAA provisional mark in both the 3,000m and 5,000m. Both are expected, along with Henderson, to continue to be top distance runners in the conference and East.

In addition to Henderson, Bauer and McMahon, several returning runners should continue to be major contributors, based on W&M’s 23rd-place NCAA cross country finish this past season. Senior Tara Guelig competed in the 5k last season, finishing fourth at CAAs. Sophomore Jackie Kosakowski is a strong distance runner and will also be a contributor in the steeplechase after finishing third in her conference championship debut. Junior Katrina Menard has solid experience as a two-time CAA placer in the 10,000m. Newcomers Kristyn Shiring, Karen Pulliam, and Jessica Allred have all contended for individual state high school championships and should be major contributors in the distance events.

Additionally, a steady contingent of sophomores, including Sarah Roessler, who placed in the conference 10,000m as a frosh, Drew Saylor, Becca Velarde and Sarah Wells gained valuable experience last year and look to continue to improve. As mentioned earlier, Lara Toscani, Erin Masterson and Lauren Heron will add strong depth and experience to the shorter distance events as well as the middle distance area.