AU Men's and Women's Indoor Track teams didn't finish the weekend's Patriot League Championships with the most points, but they could be called the competition's most efficient squads.
Eagle runners placed first in 10 of their 13 events as the women finished fifth and the men finished third, their best-ever finish in the PL Championships. Both teams overcame being shorthanded in field and sprint events by making the most of where their talent is concentrated: distance running.
"That's where we get all our points," said head coach Matt Centrowitz. "I'm happy that everyone ran to the best of their ability. You don't need a huge team to do well."
Junior Keira Carlstrom highlighted the weekend for both teams by sweeping her events, winning by a substantial margin the 3,000-meter and 1-mile runs and anchoring two winning relay teams. Senior Sean Duffy led the men, winning the 1-mile run and finishing second in the 3,000-meter run. The men's supporting cast was equally impressive, with no men finishing lower than sixth place in any event.
"We're a little deeper," Centrowitz said in comparing this year's record-finishing squad with those of the past. "More guys have speed in the middle distances."
If AU's depth was seen anywhere, it was in the 1-mile run. Freshman Stephen Hallinan and sophomore Conor Lanz finished just behind Duffy as the Eagles took the top three spots in their best performance of the weekend.
The men also won two relays. Chris Buerger, Alex Caudana, Brendan Fennell and Rob Hofmann outpaced Bucknell by 13 seconds to win the distance medley. Cuadana, Duffy, Dustin Emrani and Brian McCabe won the 4x800-meter relay, outpacing Navy's squad by five seconds.
The men also got individual victories from Emrani in the 800-meter, Phil Gaeta in the 1,000-meter and Pat McAdie in the 5,000-meter.
The women won both the relays they competed in, including a surprise in the 4x800-meter by Carlstrom, Julie Lynch, Zaia Warton and Megan Simpson.
"We weren't expecting to win, but we had great legs from the ladies," Centrowitz said. "Megan Simpson had her best race ever. Keira did a great job anchoring, but her support helped her."
Carlstrom, Lynch and Simpson later teamed with Ashley Dellinger to win the distance medley.
Overall the men collected 92 points to finish behind traditional PL powerhouses Navy (196 points), which defended its title, and Army (152 points). The women scored 48 points as Bucknell (211.5 points) won its fourth straight championship. To bridge the gap between the Eagles and a championship, AU needed more personnel and facilities for field events. Not surprisingly, Centrowitz was proud of how the teams finished with what they had.
"Until we get more guys here, especially a few more sprinters, we'll be right about where we are now," he said.
