By Scott Priest
Staff Writer

Prior to the final by-qualification meets of the indoor track season, Bates senior Liz Wanless proclaimed, “I want the big throw. I’m ready to make the jump.”

Thus far, Wanless has made good on her promise and continues to win her event, the shot put, by significant margins.

On Sunday Wanless competed in the exceedingly selective and competitive 2004 USA Indoor Track & Field Championships. The senior threw her way into the finals, where she tossed 51-02.25 for sixth place.

The Championships bring together the nation’s elite athletes as they compete for the opportunity to represent the United States at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics.

On Saturday she earned ten of the Bobcats’ 18 points at the Open New England Championships. Her shot put of 50-02.00 was more than three feet ahead of any other competitor in the 31-school field.

Kelley Godsey tallied Bates’ other eight points with her efforts in the shot put and weight throw. Godsey claimed seventh in the shot put, with a mark of 43-01.75. She added to this with a third-place finish in her primary event, the 20-lb.weight throw. Godsey tossed 59-11.25, breaking her own school record.

Other highlights included senior co-captain Julie Dutton, who finished ninth in the 5000-meter race with a time of 17:59. Kirby Sabra reached a mark of 34-04.00 in the triple jump, while first-year Ann Lovely ran the 3000m in 10:46, improving her season best by six seconds.

The University of Connecticut won the meet with 112 points, followed by Boston College and the University of Maine. The Bobcats were first among the Division III Maine schools, and third among NESCAC competitors.

One week earlier, the women competed in the New England Division III Indoor Championships hosted by M.I.T.

Wanless and Godsey finished 1-2 in both the shot put and 20 lb. weight throw, propelling Bates to a strong seventh place finish out of twenty-three teams. Williams won the meet with 154 points.

Wanless set facility and meet records with her shot put of 51-06.50. She also finished second in the weight throw, an event she added to her repertoire only this year, with a career-best throw of 54-02.50.

Godsey also set facility and meet records in the weight throw with a toss of 56-08.00, besting the competition by more than two-and-a-half feet. The sophomore followed Wanless’ shot put victory with a second place 43-11.00 toss.
The Bobcats also picked up valuable points from Dutton’s seventh-place, 10:37 finish in the 3000m. She also played a key role in the Bobcats’ most successful relay team, the 4 x800.

The relay team (Ashley Wentworth, Jen Caban, Isabel Yalouris, Dutton) crossed the line in 10:02.94 for seventh place. This effort bested rival USM, who had beaten the Bobcats in the same event two weeks earlier, by a full seven seconds. Sabra earned another two points for the Bobcats by finishing seventh in the triple jump with a season-best mark of 34-05.75.

Before winter break the Bobcats participated in the Valentine’s Classic at Boston University. Although the meet was not formally scored, several Bobcats achieved notable individual success.

Wanless shined with a first-place shot put of 49-11.75, more than four feet ahead of the next competitor. Sabra and Caban finished 14th and 20th in a very competitive triple jump. Caban was just three-quarters of an inch off her season best with a mark of 31-07.25.

Dutton, Beth Pagnotta, and Katherine Creswell all recorded season bests in the 5000m. Also finishing in season-best times were Elizabeth Scannell, Lovely, and Yalouris in the 3000m.

The next action will be the ECAC Championships at Bowdoin on March 6.

Respond to this article