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montgomery

One of Penn track and field's stars of the weekend was senior Ashley Montgomery, who won the Larry Ellis 1,500m race with a time of 4:17.95.

Credit: Zach Sheldon

Spring Fling has a very different meaning for freshman Isis Trotman.

For most Penn students, Fling weekend is a chance to forget about school, go to concerts and party. For Trotman, it was an opportunity to rewrite the record book.

Led by Trotman’s record breaking hammer throw, Penn track and field shined in the final tune-up before Penn Relays.

The Quakers split up this weekend; with the majority of the team going to Princeton for the Larry Ellis Invitational, the sprinters turned south to the Virginia Challenge in Charlottesville, Va.

Between the two meets, the Quakers set 17 new top-10 records, continuing their recent success. Many of the usual suspects put up big days yet again, including junior Taylor McCorkle and senior Clarissa Whiting on the women’s side and senior Noah Kennedy-White and freshman Sean Clarke for the men.

Without further ado, here are the three biggest stars of the weekend:

Isis Trotman

The freshman thrower and sophomore Rachel Lee Wilson have been trading the all-time school record all year, and Trotman just stepped back into the lead. After Wilson overtook Trotman with a 55.90-meter throw a week ago, Trotman flung the hammer a full meter further to push the record to 56.96. Meanwhile, her discus throw, while not a school record, was enough to put her at seventh place in the meet.

Trotman is either the program’s record-holder or runner-up in both the hammer and discus — as a freshman. Her success this early in her career gives her one of the brightest futures of any Penn athlete. If her battles with Wilson at the top continue, Trotman will have to continue improving to maintain her grip on the record.

Ashley Montgomery

The senior distance runner improved her own program record in the 1,500-meter with a meet winning time of 4:17.95. Montgomery is now nearly three seconds faster than the previous record holder, Stacy Kim. The time now places her 14th in the NCAA East region. Montgomery’s dominance of the event bodes well for her entering championship season. Montgomery also holds the 5000m record, set last year. She is one of the likeliest of Penn athletes to have success at the conference and regional level this post-season.

Chris Hatler

Hatler ran a personal best 1:48.88 in the 800m, beating his closest collegiate competitor by about four seconds. The senior’s effort was the fifth best 800 time in school history, and only .47 seconds behind the fourth-place mark. Hatler’s time is 31st in the NCAA East region this year. His run is all the more impressive considering his usual event, the 1,500m is almost twice the length. The owner of the second fastest 1,500m time is school history, Hatler is another prime candidate for success in the next few weeks.

For the team as a whole, last weekend was a productive one. The Quakers won’t have too much time to rest however, as the biggest home meet of the year, the Penn Relays, starts this Thursday.