While most of the campus was off enjoying spring break, the WCU men’s and women’s track team were competing at the PSAC championships held at East Stroudsburg’s Koehler Fieldhouse on Feb. 28 and March 1.The men’s team placed seventh at the event, sending six competitors to the podium for placing in their respective events, while the women’s team placed ninth, also sending six athletes to the podium.
The men totaled 32.5 points over the course of the two-day event to take seventh, a position that they also held after the first day of competition.
Sophomore Matt Langdale finished fourth in both the 800m and the mile, recording times of 1 minute, 57.61 seconds and 4:19.47, respectively. His time in the 800m event was good for eighth best overall in WCU history.
Another sophomore, Leighon Johnson, also captured multiple places for the Rams by finishing seventh in the 200m with a time of 22.89 seconds in addition to a sixth in the 55m event by posting a time of 6.59.
Yet another of the Golden Rams’ talented sophomores, Craig Espenshade, placed seventh in the 400m event with a time of 50.02. Espenshade was also a key contributor in the 4x400m relay team’s successful finish. That team, which also consisted of Eric Hammond, Kyle Perry, Matt Houser, posted the fourth-best time in WCU history with 3:22.74. Their time was good for fourth place at the PSAC Championships.
Early favorite Shippensburg finished first with a score of 134, Lock Haven finished in second with 129 points, while home team East Stroudsburg finished in third with 120 points.
The women’s team scored 28 points to finish ninth, also a position that they held after the first day.
Sophomore Katie Butler finished third at the championships in the high jump event by clearing 5 feet, 5 _ inches. Butler’s jump was the second best jump in school history.
Maria Baker, a junior, and Lyndsey Ratasiewicz, a sophomore, each earned individual honors in addition to playing a part on the 4x400m relay team. Baker finished third in the 55m hurdles event with a time of 8.57 seconds. As for Ratasiewicz, she finished seventh in the mile with a time of 5:08.03. Her time was the school’s fifth-best effort of all-time.
Junior Melinda Wentz and freshman Sam Smarkola were the other members of the 4x400m relay team that finished eighth in the event with a time of 4:06.83. Their time was the third-best ever at West Chester University.
Sophomores C.J. Jacob and Brittany Foye each earned a sixth place finish. Jacob earned hers for the 55m hurdles, which she finished with a time of 8.74, while Foye’s was for her distance of 36-2 ¬ in the triple jump event.
Slippery Rock finished in first place overall at the PSAC Championships with a total of 146 points. Shippensburg finished in second with 142 points and Lock Haven placed third with a score of 101.
In other track and field news, WCU assistant coach Eric Broadbent finished in fifth place in the heptathlon at the 2009 USA Indoor Combined Events Championships, which were held at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill on March 7 and 8.
Broadbent scored 5,393 points in the five events that make up the heptathlon. It was only the second time in his career that he entered the event.
Both the men’s and the women’s teams are off until Friday when they return home to WCU for the Golden Ram Invitational.
Colin McGlinchey is a fourth-year student majoring in English with a minor in Journalism. He can be reached at CM646588@wcupa.edu.