When officials announced that the Bowdoin Women's Track Team had scored a three-point victory over Brandeis at the Brandeis Invitational last Saturday, the Bears' cheer of relief and celebration broke the tension and exhaustion of the afternoon.
The meet ran almost an hour and a half later than scheduled, testifying to the focus and energy the Bears put on the track in Bowdoin's 157-154 defeat of the Brandeis Judges.
"Lots of people had really impressive individual performances, gaining a point here and there," said Dana Riker '10. "That adds up really quickly!"
Seven other New England teams competed at the Brandeis Invitational, including Colby, Bates, and the University of Southern Maine, all of whom Bowdoin will have to fend off at the Maine State Championship.
The Bears clinched their victory with the accumulation of some outstanding individual efforts, including a kick in the final stretch of the 400-meter dash by captain Alison Pilon '09 that landed her a second place finish.
"It's great to have Alison running so well," said Coach Peter Slovenski. "When she is healthy and running well it gives us a lot more depth in the sprints and relays."
Meagan Tilton '11 also gathered points for the Bears with a fourth place finish in the 55-meter hurdles, and a third place finish in the high jump.
"Meagan Tilton is having a terrific season," said Slovenski. "She set two personal records on Saturday and gave us points in some difficult events."
First place finishes by Elsa Millett '12 in the 200-meter dash and Laura Peterson '12 in the long jump also gave valuable points to Bowdoin. Second place finishes by Kelsey Borner '09 in the shot put, Chris Head '11 in the pole vault, Ali Chase '09 in the 600-meter run, the distance medley relay, and the 4 x 800-meter relay helped seal the deal for the Bears.
The 4 x 800-meter relay, the day's final event, was the height of the meet's tension for many, when an unclear point margin put weight on the performances of Jess Sokolow '09, Riker, Caroline Tory '12, and Molly Duffy '11.
"It was great to see them leave absolutely everything out there," said Christina Argueta '11. "We all try and do this each week, but I think that Dana, Molly, Caroline, and Jess really exemplified that attitude this week."
This weekend, the Bears will host the MIT Engineers, who placed third at the 2008 Division III New England Championship.
"MIT has some really strong runners and it will definitely be a close meet," Riker said. "But we have a lot of depth and if everyone on the team rises to the occasion the way they did at Brandeis this past Saturday, we should be able to compete with them."
The meet against MIT marks a turning point in the track season, when championship meets with heavy competition, like the February 6 Maine State Championship and the February 21 Division III New England Championship, will demand the same kind of performances the Bears showed Brandeis.