The men’s and women’s track and field teams, currently in between their indoor and outdoor season, have to find ways to stay motivated during mid season.
The team, although eager to reach individual goals and statistics, also collectively stressed the need for constant determination and effort despite injuries and long hours of practice.
Lauren Gambescia, senior criminology major, said that if you want to do track that you have to devote at least three hours a day to practice. Gambescia also said that two stand-out people who she really admires are Christiana Taylor and Dana Nardello. She says that these women are not only good athletes and captains, but have great ethics and are just really good people in general.
As a distance runner Gambescia’s personal goals are,”to be in the best shape possible for the outdoor season, get strong at the 3,000 meter race and to get [her] endurance up.”
Quiana Volney, a sprinter for the team and freshman business major, has another goal, to overcome an injury she got in practice when she was running the first race of 55 hurtles. Over break, she received news that the injury was more serious than she originally thought. She had a stress facture of the fibula in her right leg.
“It’s all about your determination,” Volney said. “I am not a quitter.”
When she needs a lift she can get it from her role model on the team, Christiana Taylor, who teaches her to be aggressive, and her sister who was the one who first influenced Volney to take on track in middle school.
Sophomore English and secondary education major Brianna Conner’s personal goals include beating her personal record for javelin. Nilah Smith, sophomore communication major, is looking forward to see what she can do in the jumps.
“As long as I have my endurance and strength, the speed will come,” Smith said.
Anthony Girolama, freshman undecided major, can’t wait for the NCAA tournament, the 800, the 500, the outdoor 152, 800 and 400 hurtles. Junior history and political science major and three-time All-American Christiana Taylor spoke of the importance of being a leader to the underclassmen.
“I try to be hard on them but to be a friend at the same time,” Taylor said. “If they don’t have somebody to push them or they see someone with a bad attitude, their talent goes to waste. One thing we don’t need is negativity.”
Katie Visentin, freshman business major, made the Cabrini school record in the shot put, posting a mark of 39′ 11
