POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - It is pouring over Vassar's Weinberg Track. Bard Track and Field huddles under the tent, stepping out for track baptisms under the freezing rain on Saturday afternoon at Vassar's Twilight Invitational. 

Avery Crafton, and Ola Ogunleye ran in the 100m dash, the pair of sophomores finishing in 12.50 and 13.31 respectively. Crafton seems to be on the mend, as he remarks that it was the best feeling race for his injured leg yet. On the women's side, Gabrielle Parchment and Hisani Rice tore up the track, going for 13.49 and 15.74 over 100m. 

 Doubling the distance, James Washington competes with returning Crafton and Ogunleye. The wet track is not conducive to personal bests, as remains the theme for sprinters today. Washington clinches overall fifth with 24.05, Crafton ends in 26.03, and Ogunleye pushes through in 28.34. Parchment also returns for the 200m, with Loie Acton in the following heat. Both take top ten spots in the event, Parchment through in 28.41, and Acton in 29.31.

Kariuki Massio, Carina Cooke, Washington and Acton all ran the 400m. Washington and Massio lined up in the same heat, finishing in 53.61 and 54.86 respectively. Cooke and Acton are competitive in their heats, taking a seventh-place 1:02.86 and a ninth-place 1:06.00 each.

In the 800m, Elijah Flynn, Calvin Thomas, Charlie Grenadier, Massio, Chloe Desautels, and Kai Roper all compete in the harsh conditions. Massio comes through his first lap in 1:00.29, then is overtaken by Flynn, who finishes in 2:06.26, Massio following in 2:08.71. Thomas takes the lead early, pushing into the front at the 250m mark, then is tasked to push the pace forward, an unfamiliar position for the sophomore. He finishes in 2:17.14, unable to muster more without a target in front of him. Grenadier ran a competitive race in the middle of the field, battling into a 2:26.19. Roper "was told afterward by Brody to get out faster and finish faster—just run faster! I was nervous about catching up to everyone, but I passed three people during the second lap." She comes in at 2:39.86, a personal best by two seconds. Desautels followed close, a 2:51.62 for the senior.
In the 1500m, Flynn chases Bard history again, coming just short this time at 4:10.80. His third lap remains the place of focus, as the junior split 1:08.26 over that 400m, a two second slowdown from his closing quarter. He mixed up with the front pack to finish in ninth place, a new kind of race for him, and a new challenge. Grenadier split a personal best over the kilometer and a half, 4:45.21 represents a five-second cutdown for the sophomore. Hameed Azad, pacing with and around Grenadier, followed close in 4:54.77.

Desautels got in front early in her 1500m, following the leader through, and cutting five seconds from her last lap to finish in 5:45.82. She has excelled at the middle distance, and will continue these events going into Liberty Leagues. Adeline Kruk lined up in the same heat, smiling the whole way as she made a series of confident passes to finish in 5:55.34, missing her personal best by one second. The entire field was taken out quickly, with both runner's first 300m being well below their following splits.
Bo Hopwood was eyeing the Liberty League qualifying standard of 10:45.00 over the 3k steeplechase. He stayed on the mark through 1400m, where he made a decisive pass against the only athlete near him, and began hawking down second place. Unfortunately, he was too far behind, and despite gaining ground, did not catch up over the remaining kilometre and change. Hopwood sprinted home in 11:02.33, becoming second in Bard history, and setting a personal best by thirteen seconds. Along with Thomas, he will represent Bard at Liberty Leagues in the steeplechase.

Freya Jones and Alex Laskowski headlined under the lights. After dusk, the two lined up to race over twelve and a half laps, Jones aiming for under twenty minutes, Laskowski for a time in the twenty-ones. The field takes the pair out strong, and Jones momentarily drops into a 3:16 half mile split, letting two Vassar runners overtake her. She valiantly attaches to them, getting dropped a few minutes later. Coming into the last lap, the clock reads 18:27; she needs to close in 93 seconds to finish under 20—that's four seconds faster than her average. Jones rips an 83 second last lap, overtaking the aforementioned two Vassar runners to finish in 19:49.63, moving into second in program history, over Mackie Sieben's 2009 19:59.15, which was also ran at Vassar.

Laskowski "feels really good, I'm really appreciative of all the support. My friends, family, and loved ones gave me a lot of support. On her renewed mental poise: "Brody kept reminding me to be positive, think positive thoughts. [The change in mentality] feels incredible, now that I'm doing something more catered to me, I feel like I'm accomplishing something I was made to do." She ran even splits for the duration, doing well to not fall into self-defeating mental traps, and was rewarded with a 21:42.32, placing her fourth in program history.

Bard's only relay of the day was a 4x100m team composed of Crafton, Massio, Roienko, and Washington. The four finished in 47.22, and will chase the elusive school record at LibertyLeagues.

Over to the field, the rain was a decisive factor for every athlete. McKenna Reeves cites the wet conditions turning into slippery implements and fouls galore. Despite that, she swung the discus 19.19m. Lismery Guzman-Cruz and Ava Gregory were close behind at 15.43m and 14.28m respectively. Johnny Henriquez's discus went 18.30m on his second attempt, a clean 60 feet still misses his personal best by six meters. Henriquez also threw shot put, getting a season best 8.18m on his third and final try.

Henriquez's big break was in the javelin, where he launched a 33.04m attempt on his second try. During his second to last try, however, he felt a pop in his right elbow, which marked the end of his throwing for the day, ending at ninth overall. Gregory went for 26.27m, and the first-year clinches fifth overall, even with a mark that is four meters from her best ever. The pair are in great form for Liberty Leagues next week.

In the shot put, Eanna Hauck placed sixth with a 10.36m attempt on her first try. The rain is most evident here, as she garners two uncharacteristic fouls in her final two attempts. Reeves went for 8.50m, also on her first, but maintains that her warmup throws went further, and blames the rain picking up as she began her actual attempts. Guzman-Cruz rounds off the list at 6.77m on her second attempt.

It's Bard Track and Field's final tune-up before Liberty League Outdoor Championships, and everything is in place. Coach Brody Smith has composed a diverse set of scoring possibilities for the weekend, which will play out over May 1-2nd, at St. Lawrence in Canton,


Men
4x100
Crafton, Massio, Roienko, J.Washington 47.22

100m 
Avery Crafton 12.50
Ola Ogunleye 13.31

200m 
5. James Washington 24.05
Avery Crafton 26.03
Ola Oguneleye 28.34

400m
James Washington 53.61 
Kariuki Massio 54.86 

800m 
Elijah Flynn 2:06.26 PB
Kariuki Massio 2:08.71
Calvin Thomas 2:17.41
Charles Grenadier 2:26.19

1500m
Elijah Flynn 4:10.80
Charles Grenadier 4:45.21  PB 
Hameed Azad 4:54.77

3K Steeplechase
3. Bo Hopwood 11:02.33 PB

Discuss 
Johnny Henriquez 18.30m (60-00)

Javelin Throw 
Johnny Henriquez 33.04m (108-04) PB

Shot Put
Johnny Henriquez 8.18m (26-10) SB

Long Jump 
Ola Ogunleye 4.79m  (15-8.¾) 

Women 
100m 
Gabrielle Parchment 13.49
Hisani Rice 15.74

200m
7. Gabrielle Parchment 28.41
Loie Acton 29.31

400m
7. Carina Cooke 1:02.86
Loie Acton 1:06.00

800m
Kai Roper 2:39.86 PB
Chloe Desautels 2:51.62

1500m
Chloe Desautels 5:45.82
Adeline Kruk 5:55.34

5K
Freya Jones 19:49.63
Alex Laskowski 21:42.32

Discus Throw 
McKenna Reeves 19.19m (62-11)
Lismery Guzman-Cruz 15.43 (50-07)
Ava Gregory 14.28m (46-10)

Javelin throw
5. Ava Gregory 26.27m (86-02) 

Shot Put 
Eanna Hauck 10.36m (34-00) 
McKenna Reeves 8.50m (27-10 ¾) 
Lismery Guzman-Cruz 6.77m (22-2 ½)