Sports

Women battle at Haverford

In print | February 14, 2008

Unfortunately for the Swarthmore women’s indoor track and field team, the indoor season coincides with another high-profile season: cold and flu season. Despite competing with a thinned-out roster for the second time in as many weeks, a small contingent of Garnet women still managed to churn out some respectable performances at the Haverford Quad Meet, evidence that they are able to do a lot with relatively little.

In a solid display of versatility, Nathalie De Gaiffier ’10 took to both the track and the runway, sprinting the 200 meter dash in 32.80 seconds while long-jumping 3.98 meters, the second mark just a hair away from a conference qualifier. Nyika Corbett ’10 ran a solid race in the 800 meters, coming from behind on the last lap to place fourth while clocking a 2:26.37, easily eclipsing the conference qualifying mark of 2:38.83.

Additionally, a trio of Garnet women all put up solid conference qualifying marks in the 3000 meters. Caitlin Russell ’11, Ashley Davies ’10 and Rebecca Woo ’11 all dipped under the conference standard of 11:37.30, running 11:23.39, 11:26.08 and 11:35.84 respectively.

Acknowledging the challenges facing the Garnet squad at Haverford, Woo said, “A lot of girls got sick and some people didn’t compete because of Boston. Considering that there weren’t a lot of people out there, I thought we had a strong performance.” Additionally, Woo was excited about her conference qualifier, a mark she had missed by a narrow margin the week before.

In describing the differences between her race a week ago and on Monday, Woo said “Last race I didn’t have anyone to run with, so this race it was cool to have teammates in the 3K with me to warm up with and support me.”

While the aforementioned Garnet women were busy torching the track at Haverford, Bess Ritter ‘09 was holding down the fort over 300 miles away at the Boston University Valentine Invitational. Ritter faced stiff competition from all three NCAA divisions to set a personal record in the 3000 meters, pacing herself to a time of 10:54.67. The meet at Boston is typically a very selective one on Swarthmore’s part, and Ritter was more than happy to represent the team. “The atmosphere running at BU was really great — getting the chance to race against so many athletes and watching the elite races,” Ritter said. “It was a great opportunity and a chance to measure fitness going into the last couple of weeks before Conferences.”

In spite of the fact that she was numerous hours away, Ritter’s accomplishment did not go unnoticed. Melina Healey ‘08 extolled Ritter’s virtues. “Bess Ritter is a workhorse and her determination paid off in a big race this weekend,” she said. Additionally, Healey shed some light on the allure of indoor track. “Indoor track is my favorite season. We run in the dark and go exploring at moonlit golf courses, and the rhythm of a 200 meter track is spectacular,” she said. “I can’t wait to race again!”

The Garnet women will next be in action on Friday, Feb. 22, when action begins at 4:00 p.m. from the Keogh Invite at Haverford College.