Boston, MA - The University of Hartford men's and women's indoor track and field teams competed in their first event of 2009 at the Reebok Indoor Games on Friday evening in Boston, MA. The men's squad took 10th out of a field of 13 teams, while the women finished 10th out of 13 teams. The Hawks will next compete at the Wesleyan Cardinal Invitational on Saturday, February 7 in Middletown, CT.
The women's team saw the most success in the field events on Friday evening with newcomer Kristalena Lamore breaking a pair of school records. The rookie finished fourth in the long jump in a field of 26, recording a leap of 5.41-meters, breaking her own school record of 5.27-meters set in 2008. The distance qualified the freshman for New Englands in the long jump event held at the end of February. Additionally, Lamore saw another fourth place performance in the triple jump with a distance of 11.13-meters, breaking the school record previously set by teammate Nicolle Adams in 2008. Classmate Nicolle Adams joined Lamore in the top-finishers in the triple jump, posting a 10.86-meter distance for a fifth place mark in the event.
Leading the Hawks in the track events was Kaycee Martinez. The junior completed the 55-meter hurdles in a time of 9.12 for an eighth place finish, qualifying her for the final heat. Martinez went on to finish sixth in the event, posting a time of 8.90 ? just one second off of the school record which she previously set in 2008. Sophomore Marisa Poleto placed eighth in the 400-meter dash, finishing in 1:01.16, while junior Ariana Bass had a strong showing in the 500-meter run with a time of 1:19.21 and placing ninth overall.
The men's team was led by their jumpers with three individuals placing in their events. Rookie Nigel Nimoh saw the top finish for the Hawks with a third place performance in the triple jump. His distance of 13.70-meters in the event is a personal-best, surpassing his previous mark by 0.49-meters. Senior Anthony Oluwanifise also highlighted the Hartford men with sixth place finishes in the triple jump (13.61-meters) and the long jump (6.43-meters). Joining Oluwanifise in the top-finishers for the long jump was junior Stephan Jospitre. Jospitre posted a distance of 6.47-meters for a fifth place finish in the event.
In the track events, sophomore Warren Lane led the squad, crossing fifth in the 500-meter run with a time of 1:07.10.
