2007-08 Season Recap (Indoor)

• 2007-08 Schedule and Results
• 2007-08 Roster

Led by fourth year head coach Jason Hewitt, the Mount Holyoke College indoor track competed in 11 events during the 2007-08 season.

Seniors Meghan Lynch and Catherine Riffin set the tone for the Lyons. The duo battled for the program record in the 5,000-meter run all season long, with the top mark exchanging hands three times. Riffin initially set the bar (18:54) at the Wesleyan University Invitational. One week later, Lynch gained control with at first place showing (18:36.71) at the Tufts University Invitational. The record stood for nearly a month before Riffin regained control with a ninth place time (18:24.87) at the NCAA Division III New England Regional Championships. Lynch shattered the record by over 12 seconds (18:12.63) the following weekend at All-New England Championships. She then improved on that mark by less than a second (18:12.50) at the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championships to cap off the year. Both runners qualified for the NCAA Regionals as well as the ECAC’s in the event. Lynch also qualified for the NCAA Regionals and the ECAC’s in the 3,000-meter run.

A total of 13 Lyons qualified for the NCAA Regionals. The list included senior Grace Zeigler (long jump, 55-meter dash), Joan Meiners (1,000-meter run), Halaina Demba (3,000-meter run, 1,000-meter run, 1-mile run) and Caroline Gillaspie (triple jump, high jump), as well as sophomores Crystal Boateng (400-meter dash) and Jessica Brezicha (55-meter high hurdles).

Zeigler (long jump), Demba (1,000-meter run) and Meiners (1,000-meter run) also qualified for the ECAC’s in their respective events.

As a team, Mount Holyoke posted sixth place finishes at Brandeis University’s Reggie Poyau Invitational and Smith College’s Tartan Invitational. The Lyons placed tenth at the Tufts Invitational.

Individually, Demba notched a pair of first place results. She took home top honors in the 3,000-meter run (10:59) in Mount Holyoke’s season opener at Wesleyan and followed that with a first place showing in the 1,000-meter run (3:12.06) at the Smith Winter Classic one week later.