The Emory men’s and women’s track and field squads began their indoor seasons last Friday at the Birmingham-Southern College Panther Icebreaker Meet in Birmingham, Ala., The Eagles faced off against competition from 13 Division I schools, two Division II programs and four other Division III teams. The men’s team earned 19 points and a ninth placed finish, while the women’s team earned two points, earning them a 16th place tie with Nicholls State University (La.).
Sophomore Daniel Pietsch was the only Eagle to earn a first place finish, running a time of 49.07 in the 400 meter dash. Senior Spencer Koh also earned individual points for the team with a sixth place finish in the pole vault after clearing a height of 4.15 meters. Koh also placed 22nd in the 60 meter dash, which he ran in 7.16 seconds. Other top-10 performances from the men’s team included junior Kyle Veator’s long jump of 6.42 meters, which placed him at 9th; junior Ian McIsaac’s 9th place 800 meter run with a time of 1:59.56; sophomore Benjamin Rogin’s 10th place 60 meter hurdles time of 8.62 seconds; and freshman Ian George’s 10th place 4:45.97 mile run.
On the women’s side, freshman Amanda Martin took fifth place in the 3,000 meter run with a time of 10:26.30 and senior Julie Williamson ran a 5:10.14 mile, which earned 7th place. Sophomore Kora Dreffs turned in strong performances in both the weight throw and the shot put, earning 9th and 15th place with throws of 10.95 meters and 10.75 meters, respectively. Freshman Radhika Shah’s time of 2:26.11 in the 800 meter run was fast enough for 14th place, and fellow freshman Anne Marie Simoneaux’s pole vault of 3.25 meter was 16th best. Sophomore Erica Goldman earned 17th place in the 400 meter dash with a time of 59.11.
Both track and field teams will continue their indoor seasons at the East Tennessee State University meet in Johnson City, on Jan. 15 and 16.
