May 1, 2010
Box Score
SWARTHMORE, MD - The Johns Hopkins women's track team extended its lead on the second day of the 2010 Centennial Conference Outdoor Track Championships as the Blue Jays' 89 points put them 42 points ahead of second-place Haverford (47 points) entering Sunday's final day of competition. Gettysburg (40) and Dickinson (35) are third and fourth, respectively.
The Blue Jays dominated a pair of events - the Steeplechase and the Heptathlon - to fueld their efforts on day two of the championships. Hopkins claimed the top three spots in the steeplechase and grabbed three of the top five spots in the heptathlon.
In the steeplechase, Cecilia Furlong easily claimed the top spot as her time of 11:34.33 was more than 30 seconds ahead of teammate Mary O'Grady , who was second (12:07.84). O'Grady just edged another Blue Jay, Elizabeth Lester, for second as Lester was just behind in a time of 12:07.94. The trio accounted for 24 team points for the Blue Jays.
Freshman Kristin Spera totaled 3,479 points in the heptathlon to grab a second-place finish. Stephanie Amalfe added a fourth-place finish with 3,389 points, while Erika Wheeler's 3,211 points were good for fifth place. In all, the three totaled 17 team points for the Blue Jays.
Hopkins added a second-place finish by its 4x800 relay team of Furlong, O'Grady, Marie Ferguson and Laura Paulsen. The quartet shaved 13 seconds off the previous JHU record as they clocked in at 9:20.38 and were just edged by Swarthmore (9:20.15) for the top spot.
Closing out Hopkins' efforts on day two of the championships were a pair of top five finishes in the discus. Amalfe, fresh off her efforts in the heptathlon, placed second with a throw of 118'-10" - a mark nearly nine feet better than her previous season best.
Johns Hopkins will continue its quest for the first Centennial Conference title in school history when action continues on the final day of competition at Swarthmore on Sunday.
