By Amy Webb
Sports Editor


Saturday wasn’t about Vin Diesel, undercover cops, or the streets of L.A., but it did involve racing – on an outdoor track that is. Standout sprinter Joel Colony torched the clocks with his fast and furious win in the 100m and national qualifying second place finish in the 200m. Colony’s efforts and a collection of Bobcat names in the winner’s circle propelled Bates to a second place team finish in their opening meet of the season at Springfield College. The host team captured the quad meet with 216 points, with Bates 10 points back, Tufts (184) and USM (68).

Colony produced the fastest Division III time in the nation at 10.68 in the 100m. This mark qualifies the sophomore through every post-season meet, including a place at the top of the provisional qualifying list for NCAAs. Colony’s time was just .03 off the school record and .15 back from the national automatic mark.

“The shining story of this meet was Joel, Joel, Joel,” said assistant coach Hob Brooks. “He was incredible – he really blew us away.”

In the 200m, Colony tacked on further success with a 21.50 finish, just .01 behind winner Pawel Jaroszewicz of Springfield. Bates picked up additional points in the event behind Mitch Kruass (fourth, 22.40), Joe Northrup (fifth, 22.50), and Matt Capone (sixth, 22.70). Earlier, Capone and Krauss notched solid performances in the 100m behind Colony’s win, finishing in 11.28 and 11.32 respectively.

“Joel’s performance will almost certainly earn him a trip to nationals in the open 100m,” said Brooks. “He also ran the 200 extremely fast, but unfortunately they had a camera failure, so we are operating on hand times. He was about .01 off of Jaroszewicz, who is a two-time indoor All-American and one of the country’s premier sprinters.”

Joel Anderson and Mike Downing opened their spring seasons with a pair of wins in the mid and long distances. Anderson captured the 1,500m with a 4:02.54 effort, while Downing was first in the 5,000m in 15:25.44.

“The distance guys were very effective in what they got done,” said coach Al Fereshetian. “Anderson’s win in the 1,500m over Nate Brigham of Tufts was a definite highlight. Downing’s win was also a great start to the season and marked a lifetime best by 10 seconds.”

Adam Macbeth built upon his strong indoor season with a win in the 400m hurdles. His 55.63 effort was more than two seconds ahead of the nearest competitor. Adam Soule and Matt Consigli finished in 1:00.30 and 1:00.84 for sixth and seventh in the event. In the 110m hurdles, Soule finished in 17.03 while Northrup picked up valuable second-place points with his 16.39 effort.

“Adam’s win in the 400m hurdles was impressive and ranks as the second fastest time in Bates history,” said Fereshetian. “The school record and the national standard are definitely within reach.”

In typical fashion, the infield put a Bates stamp on the opening of the spring season, as Dustin Gauthier went second in the shot put, third in the discus, and seventh in the hammer throw. Teammate Scott Cooper won the hammer throw with a 166-10.00 toss. Senior captain Matt Ondra started the outdoor season with a win in the pole vault, clearing 14-05.50.

“Ashley Ellison (first, javelin, 158-08.00) and newcomer Elliot Linsley (second, triple-jump, 0-11.00) both had personal bests and added additional strength in some areas (javelin, triple-jump) that the team really needed,” said Fershetian. “The throwers were also solid, but I expect that we will see a lot of improvement there in the weeks to come as we continue to transition to the outdoor circles.”

“This meet was a great start to the season,” said Fereshetian. “Tufts and Springfield are two of the top four teams in New England this year, so to match up so well with both of them at this early stage in the season is very encouraging.”

Bates will compete at home for the next two weeks, beginning with the Bates Invitational on Saturday. On Apr. 17, Bates plays host to the State of Maine Championships, where they will attempt to capture the elusive triple crown. The men won the cross country and indoor track state championships earlier this year to set themselves up for a potential sweep.




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