NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- The Yale women's track and field team kicked off its 2024 in style at the annual YDC tri-meet on Saturday. Buoyed by an incredible home atmosphere at Coxe Cage, the Bulldogs rose to the occasion to finish second in the team standings. Individually, first year Lucija Grd broke the school record in the 60m hurdles.

As usual, it was the throwers who set the tone in the first events of the day as Maria Leskovec secured victory in the weight throw ahead of captain Bella Bergloff in second. Leskovec's 18.11m mark represented an impressive early season PR as she won by more than a meter and a half in a field that also included teammates Makayla Harris, Kalei Memmer, Ivy Pete, Emma Peretti and Charlie Williams. Bergloff and Peretti also competed in the shot put, in which they placed fifth and sixth respectively. 

The winning feeling continued in the pole vault as Eileen Yang leapt to first (3.80m). A strong group of Dominique Romain, Bharathi Subbiah, Alexandra Bonn, Sydney Kunkler, Caroline Glessing and Kiera Suh all competed in the long jump, with Romain's 5.93m effort securing her second place in a large field. Romain later competed in the 60m, reaching the final and placing third in 7.80 seconds. Teammates Makayla Harris, Sophie Spokes and Molly Harding finished second, sixth and seventh respectively in that event, before Harding doubled back in the 200m. Her 25.58 clocking was good enough for third, close behind Mira Thakur's 25.35 in second and just ahead of Casia Provencal, Ella Mainwaring Foster, Bridget Vitu, Caroline Glessing, Sabrina Mellinghoff and Sydney Kunkler. 

The highlight of the day, however, was undoubtedly Grd's 8.56s school record in her first outing for Yale in the 60m hurdles. Teammate Casia Provencal also ran strongly as she placed fifth with a time of 9.11. Another first year, Victoria Guerrier, took the dub in the 400m, her time of 56.84 good enough for a convincing win ahead of a field also including Mainwaring Foster and Mellinghoff. Guerrier's sister, Gloria, nearly followed suit as she had a narrow loss in the 500m, running 1:14.77 ahead of Lola Isom, Kalista Villatoro and Ruby Barton. 

Yale's success continued in the middle distance events, as Kyra Pretre and Hebe Chadwick secured a strong 2-4 punch in the mile alongside Julia Dvorak and Marina Carlos, with Pretre's 4:48.72 clocking representing a PR in her first meet of the year. She later came back to finish fourth in the 3000m right behind teammate Charlotte Whitehurst's 9:47.41 PR. Yale was also represented in the 800m with Kylie Goldfarb and Cara Joyce both dipping under 2:20 in fourth and fifth. 

The day was concluded with the relays, with the Bulldogs placing fourth in the 4 x 800m in a time of 9:13.71 before winning the 4 x 400m in the final event of the meet thanks to Thakur, Harding, Vitu and Gloria Guerrier combining for a 3:48.01 clocking.

Full results can be found here.

Up next: 

• The Bulldogs will be back in action at the River Hawk Invitational next weekend on January 26th. This will be the first time away from the Coxe Cage as they head up to Boston to run on the newly constructed TRACK at new balance.