W. Track qualifies 10 for ECACs in Syracuse

Six members of the Penn women's track team will head to Syracuse this weekend for the East Coast Athletic Conference championships. There they will compete against the top athletes from Maine to Virginia. Difficult qualifications are required for someone to compete in this event. In the high jump, 5-feet-6 was the minimum level to gain entrance in the championships. This mark was usually enough for Tiffany Archer or Nicole Maloy to win first place in their competitions. Assistant coach Tony Tenisci downplayed the importance of the ECACs. He also deemphasized the fact four Penn athletes qualified in addition to the six that are going but chose not to attend. "For us the most important meet is the Heptagonals. Period," he said. "If they want to go and have that experience, great. If they stay back, that's fine too." He added the Quakers usually compete against the Ivy League and other teams in their conference. In the ECACs much larger scholarship schools will participate, so the outcome is not as significant as the Heptagonals. Maloy, Angie Jiminez, Dawn McGee, Daria Smith, Jenee Anzelone and Maggie Morrow make up the Penn contingency. Smith also doesn't think this is an important meet for the team. "It's more for yourself," she said. "You're not going for your team. It's basically a chance to improve your times." Her goal is just to try to run a good time because there is "no pressure." Despite the lack of emphasis on success, Tenisci is optimistic for the chances of the Penn athletes. He believes many of the athletes have the potential to reach the finals. He added, though, that it will be difficult because of the unusually high level of competition. "It's so tough, it's like being at nationals. You've got some of the finest teams in the country here," Tenisci said. Only one athlete in Penn history has ever won an event at the ECACs. Christell Williams won the 55-meter hurdles and 100-meter hurdles in 1988, and the 55-meter hurdles again in 1989. Tenisci does not expect the Ivy League to be well-represented in Syracuse. Usually most people are either in the middle of taking midterms or going on Spring Break. The result is many athletes who decide not to go. For many of the bigger schools, this is different. The ECACs serve as the conference championship for many schools, like George Mason and William and Mary. Consequently, most athletes from those schools compete. A great deal of excitement should be generated at Syracuse's Manley Field house this weekend when the champions of the ECAC are determined. According to Tenisci, not much excitement will come from the field house itself, which he described as merely an oval. "It has about as much personality as your shoe," he said.