FAIRFAX, Va. - Senior Marissa McDonald (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin East) leaped 5.79 meters in the long jump at the Mason Last Chance meet Sunday and qualified for the Eastern College Athletic Conference indoor championships in the James Madison track & field team's final meet of the regular indoor season.
McDonald surpassed the ECAC standard of 5.70 meters on her first jump of the day. She finished second as Ashley Adams, who competed unattached, went 5.80 meters. The senior is now qualified two compete in two events at the ECACs after hitting the 60-meter dash qualifications at the Sykes & Sabock Challenge Cup on Feb. 2.
Senior Adrena May (Chesapeake, Va./Great Bridge) heaved a 15.66-meter toss to win the weight throw competition Sunday afternoon. It was her personal-best throw and the fourth best toss in school history. Fellow senior Christianna Moss (Montpelier, Va./Patrick Henry) finished third in the event with a 14.22-meter heave.
Another victory on the day came from senior Katie Harman (Clarksville, Md./River Hill) when she won the mile run with a time of 5:02.22. Her time, however, was just shy of the ECAC qualifying time of 4:59.04. She is already eligible to compete in the 4x800 relay from the Patriot Games Jan. 26 with sophomores Kristen Landry (Boonton Township, N.J./Mountain Lakes) and Morgan Sheaffer (New Bloomfield, Pa./West Perry) and junior Erin Lopresti (Cranberry Township, Pa./Seneca Valley).
Freshmen Caroline Morris (Fredericksburg, Va./James Monroe) and Kathleen Stewart (Holland, Pa./Council Rock South) each posted personal records at the Mason Last Chance meet. Morris ran a 2:22.90 in the 800-meter to capture sixth place, and Stewart ran a 3:01.59 in the 1,000-meter to take fifth place.
The Dukes now look to the ECAC indoor championships March 1-3 in Boston, Mass. JMU has athletes qualified to compete in 13 events next weekend, and the first JMU event is slated for a 3 p.m. start on Saturday, March 2.
