The Bears excelled at both the WashU Invite and the Distance Carnival (Lydia Nicholson | Student Life)

The Washington University men’s and women’s track and field teams hosted the WashU Distance Carnival and WashU Invite on March 28-30. The men’s and women’s teams won the WashU Invite with 166.50 and 216.75 points respectively, defeating eight teams, including University Athletic Association (UAA) rival University of Chicago.

The Distance Carnival, which attracts some of the most talented collegiate runners from Divisions I, II, and III in the Midwest, saw 17 Top 15 finishes for the Bears across the 10-event meet. Throughout the Distance Carnival, mid-distance events were a strength for the Bears.

Across both the Distance Carnival and WashU Invite, the women’s team notched 17 Top 10 performances in program history, and the men’s team notched four. At the WashU Invite, senior Emma Kelley, who set the Division III national record in the 800 meter during the indoor track championships on March 8 and 9, broke the school record in the 400 meter run with a time of 54.68 seconds and was named the UAA’s Women’s Track Athlete of the Week. 

WashU Distance Carnival

 In the women’s 5,000-meter run at the Distance Carnival, fellow senior Alexandra Blake also posted a 14th-place finish with a time of 16:58.03, the fifth-fastest mark this season in DIII. In the men’s event, senior Cullen Capuano, who finished as an All-American in cross country, ran a time of 14:12.02. Capuano’s run was the second-fastest time in program history.

Capuano’s result in the 5,000 meter was made extra special due to the fact he missed part of the indoor season due to issues with his achilles, delaying his training. However, with these issues behind him, he is back in the swing of training.

“I’d say I have been doing more volume and intensity in our main workouts, which has helped me be able to get back into really good shape and get that fitness back to where I know it can be,” he said.

Kelley won the 800-meter run with a time of 2:05.07, the fastest time in DIII so far this outdoor season. Behind Kelley, seniors Danielle Schultz and Ally Sarussi placed second and fifth respectively with times of 2:10.75 and 2:11.79, which are currently the second- and sixth-fastest 800-meter times in DIII. In the men’s 800-meter run, senior Will Houser placed fifth with a time of 1:51.76, and senior William Dehmler and first-year William Frohling placed eighth and ninth respectively.

For Sarussi, who also won the 1,500 meter at the WashU Invite, her two results give her confidence going into the rest of the season.

 “I know that our season is really long. So just starting there is great, and we’re all looking to improve as we continue training and get towards the championship meets,” she said.

In the 1,500-meter run at the Distance Carnival, sophomore Katie Rector, senior Helena Teixeira-Dasilva, and junior Virginia Pridgen all placed in the women’s Top 15. Rector’s time of 4:34.52 is the ninth-fastest in DIII this season.

In the men’s 1500 meter, senior Drew Sidamon-Eristoff placed sixth, running a time of 3:52.52. Sophomore James Corbett finished just behind him in seventh place with a time of 3:52.66, beating his personal record by almost eight seconds. 

“It was awesome,” Corbett said about running in the Distance Carnival. “It’s just such a good environment — the energy is so high that you’re going to perform well. And I was lucky enough to have my teammate in the race — Drew Eristoff — and we really pushed each other. That was the biggest help that I had, was my teammate, [who] really forced me to compete.” 

Over the weekend, the women’s team notched 17 Top 10 performances in program history (Lydia Nicholson | Student Life)

WashU Invite

Following his performance in the 1,500-meter run, Corbett won the 800 meter at the WashU Invite with a time of 1:54.26, a personal best by over one second.

At the WashU Invite, mid-distance and long sprints continued to be one of the Bears’ strengths. Both the men’s and women’s teams swept the Top 4 in the 400-meter run, and the men’s team, led by Frohling, claimed second through fifth in the same event.

The Bears’ depth also showed through in relays, where the team made seven Top 3 finishes.

In the women’s 4×400-meter relay, Kelley, Schultz, sophomore Kylie Spytek, and first-year Cate Christopher finished in first place with a time of 3:46.13, currently the fastest time in Division III. On the men’s side, WashU placed first with a time of 3:17.40, the eighth-fastest in DIII.

The women’s 4×100-meter relay placed first with a time of 46.35 seconds. The time, set by first-year Maya Davis, junior Lauren Gay, junior Nicole Stewart, and sophomore Jasmine Wright is currently the fastest mark in DIII.

Field events were also a strength for WashU, with senior Seif Elkhashab finishing second in the men’s shot-put and fourth in the discus. Sophomore Jenae Bothe finished first in the women’s shot-put with a throw of 13.75m, the sixth-furthest in DIII so far. With a jump of 12.18m, senior Ebun Opata placed first in the triple jump, earning her the third-highest mark in DIII so far this season.

In the pole vault, junior Yasmin Ruff, who was named UAA Women’s Field Athlete of the Week, finished first with the third-highest vault in the nation at 3.85m, and senior Tommaso Maiocco finished second on the men’s side with a jump of 4.70m, tied for 14th-best in the nation. The Bears swept the high jump, with first-year Olivia Theisen and sophomore Jalen Dural both taking home top honors in the event.

The Bears will compete at Illinois College in Jacksonville, Illinois on April 6. The meet is the first in a series of four meets for the Bears leading up to the UAA Championships on April 27 and 28.