BY COLBY GAINES, STAFF WRITER
Saturday marked the beginning of the outdoor portion of the 2022 spring season for the St. Bonaventure men and women’s track teams at the Geneseo Early Season Invitational, where many freshmen got their first shot at a collegiate level.
To say the underclassmen performed, however, is an understatement.
The weekend’s meet became highlighted by a barrage of Bonnies’ records being broken, starting with freshman Zach Buckner breaking an over three-decade old school record in the 5000 meters. Buckner finished third overall out of 41 runners, crossing the finish line with an impressive pace of 15:09.60. The previous record, 15:47, was set in 1988 by Jim Mahar.
“Breaking the record felt pretty good, however, the race was more for me to beat my own personal best of 15:10, which I accomplished,” said Buckner. “I’m just going to keep putting forth my best effort for every race I compete in. I do want to keep breaking records, but most importantly I want to find out how far I can push myself.”
However, Buckner wasn’t alone. Freshman Clay Peets ran his way to the sixth-fastest individual 5k time in school history with his impressive 15:57.37. Additionally, Peets finished 14th overall to record two remarkable feats for the weekend. Freshman Colin McCarthy also contributed another top-10 program time for the Bonnies as he slid into the program’s number four spot with his 33:47.43 finish in the 10,000 meters.
With Saturday’s performance, both Buckner and Peets secured a spot in the Atlantic 10 Championships in the 5000 meters along with teammate Zane Courtwright, who qualified in the 800. Courtwright also qualified for A-10s in the 1500 meters.
For the women, senior Lindsey Lytle crossed the finish line with a 5:13.32, setting the record for 10th in the Bona’s record books with her personal record in the 1500 meters. Not far behind was senior Amberlee Robertson who finished at 5:13.81. Sophomore Emilie Weinbeck also recorded a personal best with her 1:14:84 finish in the 400 meters.
“Everyone put out a great effort and their times show, even if they didn’t make it on the record board,” assured Lytle. “I always love to see my teammates get their personal best times or close to it, and breaking a record is just a cherry on top.”
In addition, sophomore Lauren McGee found her way to 23 out of 41 overall in Saturday’s contest, with her best performance yet of 20:00.06 in the 5000.
With the introduction of the St. Bonaventure track team’s outdoor season, the combination of its stellar debut and relatively young roster begs the question: Can they continue to produce performances like these across the four remaining meets leading into the A-10 Championships? Only time will tell.
The Bonnies will travel to the University of Buffalo on Saturday, April 9, where they’ll compete in the U.B. Spring Opener.
gainesca21@bonaventure.edu
