Five was the number of choice for the Rams Saturday at the Southern Connecticut State University Relays, and that was not a good thing. Both teams placed fifth in the competition against the likes of Boston College, Yale and Manhattan College. Thankfully, there were some bright spots for the team.
The 800-meter race turned out to be a godsend for the Rams, with junior Clifton Hilario winning it on the men's side and senior Melissa Salerno capturing the women's crown. Sophomore Catherine Groene also picked up a much-needed victory for the Rams in the triple jump, and the women's 4x400 relay snagged first place.
Salerno's victory in the 800 did not come easily. She fought to the finish, triumphing by only a half second over Boston College's Siobhan Breagy.
"I am very happy with the two wins," she said. "It does boost my confidence a bit, but I really just see it as a chance for me to keep improving."
Hilario had an even closer finish. His victory over Andrew MacIsaac from Boston College was only by .34 seconds. His time of 1:56.38 was one of the best of his career at Fordham.
Groene, however, did not have quite the nail-biter. She leapt past the competition, jumping 37' 11.25". It was more than two and a half feet better than the nearest competitor, Manhattan's Cara Hassels.
Groene echoed co-captain Salerno's comments.
"I was happy with my win on Saturday," she said. "For me it was a sign of consistency and hopefully something I can continue to build off of."
If there were simply a relay competition to determine how great your team was, Fordham would win it every time. The Lady Rams did not let anyone sniff victory in the 4x400, with the A and B teams going one-two in the race. Freshman Sherilyn Groeninger, sophomores Emily Kolodgy and Kristin Pezzuti, and junior Brigid Moriarity ran the winning time of 4:07.50.
The B team did not disappoint either. Freshmen Daniela Hess and Jana Trenk, junior Maggie McGowan, and Salerno finished just seven seconds behind the A team and seven seconds clear of the third place team from Stonehill College.
2008 Woodie Awards
Be the first to comment on this story