May 13, 2007

PRINCETON, N.J. - Murielle Ahoure, a sophomore from Bristow, Va., successfully defended her titles in both the 100- and 200-meter dash on the final day of the ECAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships, held at William Weaver Track and Field Stadium in Princeton, N.J. She was named the Most Outstanding Performer of the ECAC Championships for her stellar performance at the three-day meet.

Ahoure finished first in both the 100- and 200-meter dash races as a freshman at last year's ECAC Championships, and duplicated the feat this year, winning both races as a sophomore. In the finals of the 100-meter dash, Ahoure ran a time of 11.44 seconds, finishing nearly two-tenths of a second faster than the second-place finisher, Jessica Foreman of the University of Connecticut, who finished the race in 11.63 seconds.

The graduate of Hayfield Secondary School had a similarly dominant showing in the finals of the 200-meter dash, placing first with a time of 23.67 seconds. Pittsburgh's Shantea Calhoun was the next closest finisher, clocking in at 24.19 seconds. Mason had two athletes run in the finals of the 200-meter dash, as freshman Tiara Swindell, a native of Hampton, Va., placed ninth with a time of 25.18 seconds.

Both Ahoure and Swindell teamed with sophomore Ryann Hendricks and freshman Marie Fields to run in the finals of the 4x100-meter relay. The team finished fifth with a time of 46.56 seconds. University of Pittsburgh's team of Martina Hallman, Raquel Bender, Shanea Calhoun and Shantea Calhoun won the title, finishing first with a time of 45.58 seconds.

The men's team competed in one event on the final day of the IC4A Championships, running in the finals of the 4x800-meter relay race. The Patriots team of freshman Anthony LaMastro, junior Ryan Davis, freshman Michael Pachella and junior Kris Cruz finished in fourth place, crossing the finish line in 7:31.80. William and Mary's team of Matt Wolak, Ryan Jones, David Groff and Matt Warco finished first with a time of 7:24.97.

In the team scoring, the women finished 11th at the ECAC Championships with 24 points. Georgetown was first with 79 points, while Pittsburgh and Virginia tied for second place with 63 points. On the men's side, the Patriots tied for 34th place at the IC4A Championships with five points. Liberty won the men's title with 77 points, Virginia finished second with 66.50 points and Manhattan College placed third with 51 points.

Next up for both the men's and women's track and field teams are the NCAA East Regional Championships, scheduled for May 25-26 in Gainesville, Fla.