By Jessica Landman
Three athletes represented Plattsburgh track and field at the All-Atlantic Region Track and Field Conference championships March 4 at Nazareth College.
“We did have more qualifications, but we had some injuries and some other unfortunate events, but it was awesome to have those three go to regionals,” senior captain Kristen Boerke said,
Brexton Montville ran first on Friday in the 60-meter preliminary race. He finished his race with a time of 7.09 earning him 11th place, just places from qualifying for the final race that was run the following day.
The Cardinals began their competition Saturday with Janyll Barber in the 400-meter dash. She completed her run in 1:00.15 with a 200-meter split time of 27.84 seconds. Barber finished seventh overall in the region.
Just after Barber’s race, Aislyn McDonough ran in the 800-meter race. At the first 200-meter mark, she clocked a time of 32.12 seconds. At the 400-meter, halfway through the race, she came in at 1:06.32 in third place. With just one lap left to go, McDonough was at 1:39.91 and increased her placement to first. She finished the race with an overall time of 2:14.66 which put her in second place overall and earned her a ticket to North Carolina for the NCAA Division III championships. This was also McDonough’s best time she had ever run, also known as a personal record.
“When I ran 2:14, I was almost relieved,” McDonough said. “All of my hard work I had put in from summer training, cross country and winter training finally paid off. All of the pieces came together and I ran like the runner I always knew I could be.”
Montivlle wrapped up the meet for the Cardinals in his second race for the regional championship meet. He ran in the 200 meter sprint and completed the race in 11th place, the same as his race the previous day. His final time was 22.69 seconds. Montville was one of only three SUNYAC competitors that qualified for the regional championships.
The following week, McDonough traveled with coach Brett Wilmott to North Carolina for the NCAA Division III indoor track and field championships. McDonough qualified for the 800-meter event with her personal best time that she ran at the regional championship meet. After running a competitive race against some of the best Division III runners from across the country, McDonough ran her second best time ever finishing at 2:16.89 earning her 16th place overall in the nation.
“I cannot put into words how much gratitude I have for my coaches, teammates, friends and family,” McDonough said. “This team is the most supportive and positive environment I’ve ever been lucky enough to be a part of and will forever hold a special place in my heart.”
The NCAA championships were the final meet of the 2021-22 indoor track and field season. The team is looking to the outdoor season to continue with their success.
“I expect them to keep working hard and get better and we’re going to be able to shift focus on a couple of different events,” Head Coach Andrew Krug said.“Getting them back competing at a high level at SUNYAC for the team and then going on to that regional championship, then hopefully, again we’re having the national discussion.”
