W. Track set to climb Heps ladder

As the Penn women's track team opens its indoor season at Brown this weekend, an optimism uncharacteristic of a squad that finished last at indoor Heptagonals a year ago abounds. "Last year, we had a lot of holes in a lot of events," senior sprinter and hurdler Bassey Adjah said. "This year we're more balanced, and we have a lot more talent in each of the events. We should do very, very well." Helping to fill these gaps will be a strong group of freshmen that is not only talented but appears to be jelling as a unit. "This group of freshmen has a chance to rise together," junior pole vaulter Liz Wittels said. "Not only are they good, but they really like each other and they really push each other." Though it is always dangerous to rely on freshmen to fill voids, the dedication this group showed by starting workouts a full week before the rest of the team left a favorable impression on co-captain Monica Maccani. "Given their talent and seeing the support they give one another, they'll do really well and help the team out a lot," Maccani said. In addition to the potential impact of the freshmen, the Quakers return a number of veterans who were forced to shoulder the load for a very young team last year. Co-captain JaJuan Gair, along with Adjah, will once again lead a pack of sprinters that looks much improved from last year. Gair and Adjah will also be looked to in the hurdles, where Gair hopes to build upon a performance that earned her All-East honors at the ECAC Championships. "JaJuan's a great athlete, a really superb athlete," Maccani said. "And she's a great leader by example." Maccani hopes to provide the same type of leadership for a throwing corps that has consisted of mostly freshmen or first-time throwers during the indoor season. Because of the space limitations imposed by an indoor fieldhouse, the Red and Blue will be without the spectacular javelin throwing of Maccani and school-record-holder Julie Siebert-Johnson. The Quakers will look to junior Katie Shannon and a few of the newcomers to pick up the slack for the temporary absence of Siebert-Johnson. Pole vaulting should be another bright spot for the Quakers. Wittels broke the school indoor mark last year with an 11'6 3/4" vault and hopes to improve on that impressive mark. Along with senior Ami Desai, Wittels leads a formidable group of vaulters. "We should have a strong pole vaulting team," Maccani said. "They can really help us out as a team." Senior Jennifer Thompson and sophomore Meredith Bunche will be strong supplements to a jumping squad that boasts the 1999 Heptagonal long jump champion in Bassey Adjah. Though much of this lineup is the same from last year's disappointing indoor squad, hope stems from the belief that this year's Quakers team is stronger, faster and better-conditioned than the previous version. "We're working harder this year. Our lifting regimen is more intense, and everyone seems a lot more dedicated and into it," Adjah said. "I think everyone knows that we have the potential to be very good this year, and they don't want to be left out, so everyone wants to do their little part." Wittels attributes the better condition of the team to dedication and an intense regimen that includes hill training, weight lifting and an abundance of good old-fashioned running that often leaves members of the team without their lunch. "Our freshmen are in awesome shape -- we're all in much better shape," Wittels said. "Last year we were really out of shape and it hurt us." The extra conditioning and the influx of talented freshmen should be enough to put the Red and Blue closer to contention for the Heptagonal Championships. This Saturday's meet at Brown should be a good indication of how the Quakers will fare against some of their Ivy League foes. "We'd like to get some good marks at Brown because we have to show what we can do in the indoor season," Maccani said. With freshmen pushing already strong upperclassmen, the Quakers have high hopes. "If the freshmen can rise together, and you put that with the depth that we already had, we're gonna be really good," Wittels said.

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