Coming off of a successful indoor season, the AU track team has continued its success, with four Eagles qualifying to compete at the NCAA East Regional.
Senior Keira Carlstrom qualified in the 5,000-meter event, while senior Zaia Wharton qualified in the 800. Junior Brendan Fennell and sophomore Steve Hallinan earned the right to compete in the 5,000 and 1,500, respectively.
Carlstrom, who has been named an All-American three times in cross country, is looking to earn her first All-American honors in track in her final season.
"Last year my goal was just to get there," said Carlstrom, who placed 16th last year at regionals. "Now I know that I've done that, the main goal is to get an All-American in track."
One of the main reasons for Carlstrom's improvement has been a change in her training schedule, practicing as if she was going to compete in the 10,000.
"Training for a longer distance has made me stronger and more prepared to face the 5,000-meter race," Carlstrom said. "A month ago I was already in better shape than where I peaked last year."
Wharton's regional berth is the culmination of her hard work at AU. During her time here, Wharton has improved her 800 time by almost 11 seconds.
"Not many people in college can say that," coach Matt Centrowitz said. "All season her goal has been to get to this point. Now she needs to change her goal to putting up a good effort."
While the women who qualified are competing for the last time, Hallinan and Fennell will be competing for the first time. While they both have a chance to be competitive, the regional competition will serve as a learning experience.
"To be exposed to this so early definitely opens many more doors down the road," Hallinan said. "There are a lot of guys who don't get to regionals until their senior year, so they don't get another shot at it."
"Whatever they do, they're going to improve on it next year," Centrowitz said. "I'm excited to see their growth."
Although Hallinan qualified for regionals in the 1,500, he hopes to earn an automatic bid to compete in the 5,000 by winning the Patriot League championship in the event. He believes he can be more competitive in the longer event.
"I guess what it comes down to at the regionals is a lot of tactics in the 1,500," he said. "It often ends up being an all-out sprint the last 400 meters, and I'm more of a strength guy than a speed guy."
This weekend, the team will compete in its final meet before the PL championships. However, the prestigious Penn Relays is no simple tune-up event.
"It's one of the biggest track meets in the country," Carlstrom said. "All the top athletes in the nation show up. The fact that we are in contention shows how far our program has come."
One of the highlights at the meet will be the 4-by-mile relay, in which Fennell and Hallinan will team with sophomore Brian McCabe and junior Conor Lanz. Last year, the same four runners competed at the Penn Relays, finishing in 12th place, recording the slowest time in AU school history.
"It was embarrassing for them last year," Centrowitz said. "We're looking forward to letting them redeem themselves"
