McDonald's 14th place finish at NCAA Division III national championships highlights Corsairs' season

(Dartmouth, MA) -- In the final race of her collegiate career, senior Maura McDonald (Greenfield, MA) finished 14th overall in the 5,000 meters at the NCAA Division III track and field championships held May 22 at Baldwin Wallace University in Berea, Ohio. In her third appearance in an NCAA Division III national championship race, but her first outdoors, McDonald posted a time of 18:07.52 to finish 14th in a field of 21 runners.

McDonald's appearance in the NCAA Division III nationals was the highlight of the Spring 1999 track and field season for Coach Jon Hird's Corsairs. McDonald had a series of outstanding performance throughout the season for the Corsairs.

Here's a look at the spring track and field highlights at UMass Dartmouth:

-Maura McDonald lowered her provisional qualification time for the NCAA Division III Nationals with a fifth-place finish in the 5,000 meters at the New England Championships on May 15 in Orono, Maine. Competing against student athletes from Division I, II and III institutions from throughout New England, McDonald posted a time of 17:46.07 for fifth in the 5000 meters. Almeida concluded his track and field season with a very strong fifth-place finish in the triple jump at the New England Championships. Almeida's triple jump was 45-4.

-With a second-place finish in the 5000 meters at last Saturday's ECAC Championships, Maura McDonald earned a provisional qualification to the NCAA Division III Nationals. McDonald placed second in the 5,000 with a time of 18:02 in the ECAC Championships held May 8 at Williams College. Almeida turned in UMass Dartmouth's top performance at the Men's New England Division III Championships held May 8 at Colby College. Almeida finished fourth in the triple jump with a leap of 44-7, while teammate Mitch Sousa (Fall River, MA) was eighth at 42-8 1/2. In the high jump, UMass Dartmouth's Ken Scanzio (North Attleboro, MA) placed fifth at 6-3.

-Maura McDonald and her sister Erin McDonald (Greenfield, MA) were the Corsairs' top performers at the annual Women's New England Division III championships held in Springfield on May 1. Maura placed seventh in the 3,000 meters with a time of 10:28.46, while Erin finished eighth in the 1500 meters at 4:50.51. The McDonald sisters also earned first-place finishes to lift the Corsairs to a seventh-place finish at the Alliance Championships held at Westfield State College, April 24. Erin McDonald finished first in the women's 1,500 meter dash with a time of 5:00.94. Maura McDonald matched her younger sisters' performance with a first-place effort in the women's 5,000 meter dash, finishing in 18:36.80, more than a minute and a half ahead of the second-place finisher. Maura also had a third place finish in the women's 800 meters at 2:34.04.

-In the men's competition at the Alliance Championships, Coach Jon Hird's squad placed fifth in the 10-team event held at Westfield State College. Almeida brought home UMass Dartmouth's only first-place finish with a winning toss of 13.47 meters in the men's triple jump. Almeida also added a fourth-place finish in the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 16.8 seconds. Jeff Reed (Westport, MA) placed second in the 10,000 meters with a time of 34:08.32, while teammate Pat Gallagher (Fairhaven, MA) was fourth at 800 meters in 2:03.81. The Corsairs finished second and third in the high jump, respectively, as Scanzio jumped 1.83 meters (fewer attempts) and Orlando Rodriguez (Sharon, MA) was third at 1.83 meters.

-Maura McDonald's first place finish in the 5000 meters was UMass Dartmouth's top performance at the Tri-State Championships held at Bryant College on April 17. McDonald took first place in her event with a time of 17:57.33. Erin McDonald earned a second-place finish in the 3000 meters (10:47.87). Coach Hird's men earned five second-place finishes at the event and one third-place finish. In the 10,000 meters Reed placed second with a time of 34:10, while Almeida was second in the triple jump at 42-10. Brendan McEvoy (Newburyport, MA) was second in pole vault at 9-6, and Sousa was second in long jump at 6-0. The Corsairs took second and third in the high jump as Rodriguez was second at 6-0 and Scanzio was third at 5-10.

-UMass Dartmouth took the top two spots in the triple jump at the Connecticut College Invitational held in New London, CT on April 10. Almeida brought home top honors with a leap of 43-8 1/2, while Sousa was right behind in second place at 41-6. Sousa also captured another second-place finish, in the long jump, with a leap of 20-11 1/2. Coach Jon Hird's men placed fifth in the eight-team event. Erin and Maura McDonald were UMass Dartmouth's top two finishers in the women's competition at the Connecticut College Invitational. Erin McDonald crossed the finish line first in the 1500 meters with a time of 4:56.23.

-Maura McDonald kicked off her spring track and field season with a victory, finishing first in the 3,000 meters at the Tufts University Snowflake Classic. McDonald posted a winning time of 10:36.16. In men's events at Tufts, the Corsairs finished second and fourth in the triple jump. Almeida took second place with a leap of 44-5 1/4, while teammate Sousa was fourth at 42-2 1/2.

-UMass Dartmouth opened the spring track and field season with three strong individual performances at the Wesleyan University Invitational in Middletown, CT on March 27. Rodrigues captured first place in his first high jump competition of the season. Rodrigues' winning leap was 6-0. In the triple jump event Almeida finished second with a jump of 42-4. Erin McDonald finished second in her first appearance in the 1500 meters with a time of 4:56.71.