The Plattsburgh State track and field team had solid performances in its last meet before the SUNYAC Championship.
Junior Elisabeth Plympton came in first for the 100-meter dash with the time of 12.84. Junior Marissa Jones won the 200-meter dash with the time of 25.42. Plympton came in second place with the time of 25.49. She also placed second for the long jump with the mark of 5.09m.
The team of junior Taylor Canet, sophomore Janyll Barber, freshman Aislyn McDonough and Jones had a strong showing in 4×400-meter relay with the time of 4:05.91. Junior Brianna Coon came in second of shot put with the mark of 12.22m.
The team of sophomore Luke Groves, senior Andrew Horan, sophomore Brenden Jung and senior Brian Fabian came in first for the 4×400 meter relay with the time of 3:29.70. Junior Alex Hepburn came in third for the triple jump with the mark of 12.67m.
Track and field head coach Nick Jones said the weather was probably the worst they have seen yet, but the team did all right and hit some SUNYAC qualifying marks.
Thirty-five members of the team qualified for the SUNYAC Championship and left Thursday to attend the championship hosted by The College at Brockport.
“They are resting up and sharpening up. The work is done.” Nick Jones said. “So, [we’re] just tuning up and making sure they are fresh and ready to go on Friday and Saturday.”
The training is now focusing on intensive workouts, which will be short, Nick Jones said. This will allow the athletes to recover from all the events they have done. The team’s main focus now is to do the best they could in the SUNYAC Championship.
“I am looking forward to [the SUNYAC Championship]. I am hoping to run even faster and move up in nationals hopefully,” Marissa Jones said.
After the SUNYAC Championship, the athletes who have not qualified for the Regional Conference will take their down time and focus on their finals. As the summer is approaching, the team will be training on their own to prepare for the upcoming season.
“We had a lot of personal bests, a lot of SUNYAC qualifying marks. The weather was pretty good this year, so we are happy about that. All around, it was a pretty solid year,” Nick Jones said.
With the season coming to an end, Marissa Jones will also be graduating and will be pursuing her master’s degree in social work in Albany. She is hoping that she will qualify for the national championship as she won’t be able to participate in the regional championship. After the season is over, she will take a break from running and prepare for Albany.
“I do the [Boilermaker 15k road race] every year, so I will put in some miles but after that, I will probably stop running,” Marissa Jones said. “I want to get into powerlifting. I really like to lift, but while I’m here running track, you can’t fully commit yourself to running and lifting.”
Even though it will be sad for Marissa Jones that the national championship might be her last meet, she said she is ready to move on. She said that it has been a linear progression and a good two years in PSUC. Marissa Jones’ absence will also mean the 4×100 relay team will have to find a replacement.
Marissa Jones is excited about pursuing master’s in social work because it will be the similar curriculum as psychology, her major in PSUC. She is looking forward to learn new things and study for the job that she wants to pursue in the future.
To next season’s team, Marissa Jones hopes the team keeps striving for success.
“Just to keep working hard. It’s been fun, and the end comes up quicker than you think. And you don’t want to graduate feeling that you could have done more, so do everything you can while you are still here, while you still have the opportunity.”
