ALBANY, N.Y. - Sunny skies continue through the Bobbi Palma UAlbany Spring Classic where Bard Track and Field takes another step on the way to Liberty Leagues. Past the halfway point in the season, Bard has one remaining meet until conference; athletes tune up performances and focus in on the season's capstone. Bard sets up on the bleachers right by the finish, cheering for each teammate, every race.

Carina Cooke, Loie Acton, Ava Gregory, Chloe Desautels, Emma St. Peter, and Massio all competed in varying heats of the open 400m run. Cooke finally dipped under the 62 second mark, with a gritty 1:01.77 that earned a heat win and ninth overall, and a Liberty League qualifying time. Acton has seemed to inexorably improve, her 1:04.76 today is a personal best by two seconds, and puts her within striking distance of qualifying for Liberty Leagues in her first year. Gregory took a break from throwing to throw down a 1:05.7, Desautels and St. Peter went for 1:09.44 and 1:12.62 respectively. Desautels later commented: "[I] Had a fun time in the 400. It was me and Loie [in the heat], we were in it all together." Massio went 53.92 in his heat, earning the sub-54 mark with a brutal kick in the final stretch.

In the 100m dash, Bard had Gabrielle Parchment and Hisani Rice competing. Parchment, who ran while injured, crossed the line in 13.46 seconds. Rice found a 15.36 finish, which improved on her personal best by 0.06 seconds. She has now cut 0.78 seconds from her season opener time, showing great promise in coming seasons. 

On the men's side, Avery Crafton and Ola Ogunleye returned to run their splits alone, with Crafton going 12.33, and Ogunleye going 13.04, a personal best by 0.41 seconds, which he credited to the improvements he has made on technique over the season. 

Desautels returned with newcomer Adeline Kruk for the open 800m. The pair found solid finishes in different heats, Desautels ending in 2:51.72, and Kruk in 3:00.19. Though Kruk is painfully close to the sub-3 mark, she rejoices in her tactical victory and personal best today taking the heat win in what Coach Brody called "a tactical masterclass!" Massio returned for the open 800m, he took home a four second personal best, winning his heat in 2:05.99.

Sprinters flocked to the 200m: Cooke, Parchment, Acton, Rice, and Ogunleye all came back for the half-lap sprint. Cooke's 27.04 is a quarter-second PR, and Acton's 28.45 improved on her best by 0.39 seconds. Parchment turned over a 28.19; the school record holder looks toward Liberty Leagues for a fully healthy performance. Rice's 33.37 is also a personal best; she has continuously whittled down her marks, race after race. Ogunleye set a personal best as well, ending in 25.73, which bettered his mark by a second and a half. Later, on reflection, Ogunleye said: "I wish I was more loose coming out of that curve on the 2[00m]. I'm just happy, I know what small mechanical issues I can fix before my next meet." The unflagging reflective and competitive mindset is what keeps Ogunleye moving forward in Track and Field. 

The distance team, consisting today of Freya Jones, Alex Laskowski, Elijah Flynn, Bo Hopwood, Calvin Thomas, Charlie Grenadier, and Hameed Azad, got to compete over 5000 meters. For some, Thomas, Flynn, and Azad, this is their first try at the distance. For others, Hopwood, Jones, Grenadier, Laskowski they have come to know what to expect. Jones felt much stronger than her first 5k attempt, saying "I felt grateful to be able to race, and enjoyed the sunset and beautiful weather. … I think I can still go faster, but this is a great starting point." She wants to get under the 20-minute mark, as her 20:11.70, though a personal best by fifty seconds, begs to dip into the teens. Laskowski improved on her best by two minutes, ending at 22:15.40. Similarly, she said "I'm grateful to be back into running further distances since recovering from injury, and this event proved that I feel more confident with longer races. … I intend to keep working on improving in the 5k as we near the end of the track season." Positivity and gratitude radiate around the women's distance team today.

Experience won out on the men's side; Flynn's mark of 15:55.51 misses his target of the school record by nine seconds, but is a powerful first try at the distance. Hopwood's expertise showed in consistent splits, as he ran a personal best 16:13.57. his first personal best of the outdoor season. Thomas, running injured, went for 17:45.60, but paid for it after the race. Grenadier and Azad executed a refined pacing strategy, but Grenadier had a stronger kick on the day, as he passed through the line in 18:01.64, a personal best, with Azad following in 18.08.66.

On the field, the standout performance of the day, as well as massive improvements on new jumper's marks. The star of the show is Gregory, and her first collegiate javelin throws. On her fifth attempt, Gregory launched a 29.19m throw, which put her in second overall. Also throwing javelin, Eanna Hauck and Kai Roper, their best attempts sitting at 17.32m and 8.27m respectively. Gregory remains humble after her performance, "[It was] fun to be able to actually throw, it's my first collegiate throw, and I did better than I thought considering I haven't had the chance to throw."

Ogunleye's newfound occupation, the long jump, saw a few more attempts from him today. After qualifying for the finals with a 5.32m jump, he would unfortunately not improve the result. He ends the day with a personal best, and his first recorded collegiate long jumps. Johnny Henriquez, recovering from an ankle injury, threw discus for the second time in his career. He set a personal best today, 23.79m improves on his previous mark by more than a meter. He'll target the decathlon beginning next outdoor season, as this injury has robbed his chance.

In the shot put ring, Bard finds themselves in unfamiliar territory. All throwers concur, the ring is far more slippery than they are used to, not helped by the fact that other throwers apply chalk to their shoes, ripening the ground for fouls. All athletes from all schools threw about a meter worse than their personal bests, showing the irregularity of the surface. These adverse conditions led to a 9.76m throw from Eanna Hauck, putting her at an overall 4th place, and a 7.75m finish from McKenna Reeves. Lismery Guzman-Cruz ended at 6.46m; generally, athletes improved as the throws went on, becoming accustomed to the difference. Henriquez was also affected, finishing with a 6.68m throw on his second attempt.

In the discus, a relatively new event for all throwers, Reeves set a personal best with a 21.03m spin. Guzman-Cruz takes home a 16.21m mark; the Bard women's throwing team has grown immensely, and they find success branching into other throws through their unity.

Bard returns next weekend, April 25th, for the coveted Vassar Twilight Invitational

Men 
400m
7. Kariuki Massio 53.92 PR

100m
Avery Crafton 12.33
Ola Ogunleye 13.04 PR

800m
Kariuki Massio 2:05.99 PR

200m
Ola Ogunleye 25.73 PR

5K
Elijah Flynn 15:55.51
Bo Hopwood 16:13.57
Calvin Thomas 17:45.60
Charlie Grenadier 18:01.64
Hameed Azad 18:08:66

Long Jump
Ola Ogunleye 5.23m (17-02) PR

Discus
Johnny Henriquez 23.79m (78-01)

Shot put 
Johnny Henriquez 6.68m (21-11)

Women
1500m
Adeline Kruk 5:59.84

400m
Carina Cooke 1:01.77 
Loie Acton 1:04.76 (new)
Ava Gregory 1:05.75
Chloe Desautels 1:09.44 (new)
Emma St. Peter 1:12.62

100m 
Gabrielle Parchment 13.46
Hisani Rice 15.36 PR

800m
Chloe Desautels 2:51.72
Adeline Kruk 3:00.19 PR

200m
Carina Cooke 27.04 PR
Gabrielle Parchment 28.19
Loie Acton 28.45 PR
Hisani Rice 33.37 PR

5K 
Freya Jones 20:11.70 PR
Alex Laskowski 22:15.40 

Javelin Throw
2. Ava Gregory 29.19m (95-09) 
Eanna Hauck 17.32m (56-10)
Kai Roper 8.27m (27-01) 

Sho Put
4. Eanna Hauck 9.76m (32-00.25) 
McKenna Reeves 7.92m (26-00) 
Lismery Guzman-Cruz 6.46 (21-02.50)

Discus
McKenna Reeves 21.03 (69-00) PR
Lismery Guzman-Cruz 16.21m (53-02)