Fitchburg State Opens At Husky Spring Invitational
The Fitchburg State men’s and women’s track and field teams opened the 2012 outdoor season this afternoon as they competed at the Husky Spring Invitational hosted by Northeastern University.
Lary shines in 3000m steeple; Lane and Merchant pace Falcon ladies
BOSTON, Mass. (March 24, 2012) – The Fitchburg State men’s and women’s track and field teams opened the 2012 outdoor season this afternoon as they competed at the Husky Spring Invitational hosted by Northeastern University.
Juniors Will Lary (Winchendon, Mass./Murdock) and Michael Grasela (New Bedford, Mass./New Bedford) led the way for Fitchburg State, turning in huge personal records in their respective events. Lary posted a personal best in the 3000m steeple, qualifying for the DIII New England’s with a mark of 9:54.35 (1st), while also finishing 19th in the 800m with a time of 2:07.95.
Grasela fared well in the 10,000m run, posting a personal best of 34:07.08 (20th), while senior Chris Kibler (Bath, Maine/Morse) also ran in the event, posting a DIII and ECAC qualifying time of 31:50.06. Sophomore Joseph Hollenbeck (Ashby, Mass./North Middlesex) finished strong in hurdle events, (110m, 400m), placing eighth and ninth respectively with times of 17.74 and 1:00.69.
In the field, junior Jimmy DiNuccio (Wilmington, Mass./Wilmington) finished third in the long-jump with a distance of 6.38m, while sophomore Zachary Desrochers (Dracut, Mass./Greater Lowell Tech) placed fourth in the discus (43.07m) and eighth in the hammer throw (46.72m). DiNuccio also threw strong in the javelin with a mark of 49.10m (11th).
On the women’s side, junior Emily Lane (Clinton, Conn./The Morgan School) was strong, both on the track and in the field, as she earned a pair of top eight honors. Lane placed fourth overall in the 400m hurdles with at time of 1:10.74 while placing seventh in the high-jump and qualifying for the DIII New England’s with a height of 1.52m. Lane also placed 11th in the pole vault with an effort of 2.67m.
Senior Madeline Merchant (Gardner, Mass./Monty Tech) made her 2012 debut on the track, notching a trio of top 12 honors, including a time of 13;14 in the 100m dash (12th), distance of 4.60m in the long-jump (9th) and effort of 10.19m in the triple jump (5th).
Senior Katrina Marrone (Springfield, Mass./Springfield Central) also ran strong on the track with a 12th place finish in the 800m run. Marrone also added to the Falcons pair of relays, leading Fitchburg State to the DIII’s and a fourth place finish in the 4x100 (51.65), while also pacing the 4x400 team to a third place finish (4:13.56) on the afternoon.
Junior Megan Gonzalez (Ridgewood, N.J./Ridgewood) rounded out the top performers of the day, placing sixth in the shot-put with a throw of 10.30m.
The Fitchburg State men’s and women’s track and field teams will be back in action next weekend as it competes in the Worcester State meet at 11 a.m.