Invitational offers great competition

The Penn women's track team had one more meet in which to prepare for next week's Heptagonal championships. Since the Heptagonals seed athletes based on their best times of the season, the George Mason Invitational was crucial. Five Quakers rose to this challenge and produced their best scores of the season, thus improving their seeds. Senior Jenee Anzelone and sophomores Adria Ferguson, Michelle Belsley and Kelley King, all feeling the championships approaching, topped their best times of the season. Junior Jamila Northington tied a school record by running the 55-meter dash in 7.21 seconds. Northington had set the record earlier this season and said she is pleased with her consistency. Penn assistant coach Tony Tenisci was very happy with the team's performance and the improved seeds for the Heptagonals. "The kids are very happy and they're running very well. It's very encouraging?We're really happy with everybody." Northington also felt the team's success at George Mason put them one step closer to doing well at next week's championships. Despite some individual best times of the season, most Quakers did not place well. Penn won only one event and had one athlete finish second and one finish fourth. Many athletes believed this was due to the unusually high level of competition at George Mason. According to freshman Tiffany Archer, Penn usually does not compete against the schools that were at George Mason. Northington said most of the schools were Division I schools with a lot of qualifiers for ECACs and nationals. Despite this competition, Archer once again was at the top of the high-jumping field. This is a familiar spot for her, as she has been there almost every meet this season. Tenisci's main concern throughout the season has been injuries. Senior Jane Kim, one of Penn's top distance runners, did not compete at George Mason due to a sore knee. However, Tenisci described her absence as "totally precautionary," and both Kim and Tenisci have no doubt she will compete at Heptagonals. Sophomore Michelle Belsley, who had a severe injury that caused her to miss much of the season, is now back and healthy and was one of the people who scored her best time of the season. Currently, nobody is expected to miss next week's championships. The concentration of the team is now heavily on the championships. Tenisci described the current goals in four words: "taper, rest, recovery and focus." Senior co-captain Maggie Morrow, who finished second in the mile, said the George Mason Invitational was "low-key" and designed for most people to "get their racing in." Tenisci is content with the performances of the team and sees no major area that needs work. "They all know what to do now, and there's nothing more to be done," he said.