Championship Preview
track teams to put aside differences

Even though Muhlenberg College is a small school, there is still a great amount of diversity if you look hard enough. Take the men’s and women’s track and field teams. Some members of the team come from New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, while others come from Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and even Florida. All have a variety of majors and future plans. Some do long distance workouts while others practice their starts. Some practice their throws while others work on their jumping approaches. And some even wear different uniforms for the Mules in the fall.

Despite these differences, all members of the track teams do share some things in common. All have passion, desire, motivation and determination to succeed in

Lachaud is ranked second in the CC in the 55 meters and fourth in the 200.

their multiple events. And when the Centennial Conference Indoor Championships roll around, the men’s and women’s track teams will put aside their differences and come together as one cohesive team.

“Centennial Conference weekend is not about the individual, it’s about the team,” said senior captain Amanda Martini. “It’s about sacrificing for the team, running six events to score points or running something you’re not used to, and stepping out of your comfort zone.”

Some talented individuals are looking to score big this weekend at the CC meet, held at Ursinus Saturday

Lynch is in the top eight on the CC performance list in the 800, mile and 3,000.

and Sunday. On the men’s side, senior captains David Chorney and Stuart Udis are hungry to score lots of points in their final indoor CC meet. Chorney will compete individually in the mile and 3000 meters, where he ranks second in both events in the conference. Udis will defend his gold medals in both the 800 meters and with the 4x800 meter relay.

Along with Chorney and Udis, look for sophomores Bobby Torphy and Rob Nihen, as well as junior Patrick Thornton, to round out the distance events.

“People are going to have to come together this weekend and compete in a lot of events for the sake of the team,” says junior Brendan Kirk. “What makes for a winning team is not only effort and sacrifice, but also having the entire team lining the track cheering for everybody. You need to support one another or you won’t be successful as a team.”

Kirk is one of those people competing in a lot of events, as he is set to run two individual events and be a part of three relay teams. He is joined by fellow juniors Jeremiah Lachaud and William Ryan and freshman Peter Rice in the sprinting events.

In the field, the Mule men look strong in the shot put, with freshman Joe Tritto and senior Evan Sheppard. Also looking to score are freshman Marc Brookland in the long and triple jumps and junior Joseph Dyer in the high and triple jumps.

While the men’s team is looking to score in different events, the women’s team will look to combine experience with some key newcomers. Junior Jennifer Lynch in the distance events and freshman Jenna Schaffer in the sprinting events are poised to compete in their first CC meet.

Seniors Martini and Lucy Brock will try to help the team in any way possible, with Martini competing in the triple jump for the first time in her collegiate career. Brock looks to score in the 55m high hurdles, where she ranks fifth going into this weekend. Junior Alex Faust is set to defend her titles in the pole vault and 400 meters, as well as competing in four other events.

Some others to watch for on the women’s side include junior Janelle Mentrikoski, sophomore Hannah Mitchell and freshmen Kimberlee Yalango and Nicolette Miller.

Even with the differences between the members of the track and field teams, the men and women have their eyes set on competing at a very high level this weekend. And after a very long and tiring weekend, both teams can appreciate all the hard work they have put into their indoor season.

As Martini says, “At the CC meet, you leave it all out there and put the pain aside until Sunday night.”
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