TROY, N.Y. – The Liberty League has announced its weekly award winners in men’s and women’s indoor track & field and four Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) student-athletes have been recognized.
Kyle Barden and
Justin Metzger were named the men’s Track and Field Performers of the Week, respectively, while
Marie Ferro and
Connor Ahlborn garnered the same honors on the women’s side.
A senior out of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., Barden earned his honor after finishing sixth or better in each of the three events he competed at the multi-divisional, non-team scoring Dartmouth Indoor Classic. Individually, he was third in the 400-run with a time of 50.65 and sixth in the 200-dash with a mark of 23.03. He also anchored the 4x200 relay to second in a time of 1:33.81.
Among the top performances of the season for the Spackenkill High School graduate was at the Class of ’32 Invitational, hosted by Colgate, where he was fourth in both the 500-meter run and the 200-meter dash to pace RPI to fourth of 17 teams. This is his first weekly honor of the season.
Metzger, a senior from Clifton Park, N.Y., was named the Field Performer of the Week for the third time this season after posting an NCAA Provisional mark of 4.91 meters in the pole vault event at Dartmouth. His height was just shy of his own school record (4.92 meters), which he set in 2009.
In four meets this season, the former Shenendehowa High School standout has finished third or higher in the pole vault event. He has claimed victory at three meets, including each of the last two, and has recorded an NCAA Provisional mark twice.
Named Track Performer of the Week for the first time this season, Ferro, who hails from Endwell, N.Y., won the 3000 meter run, posting a time of 10:20.48 and meeting ECAC qualification by over 30 seconds in the meet at Dartmouth.
The weekly honor marks the second of the season for the Maine-Endwell High School graduate, who was the Rookie of the Week selection last week. One of the most consistent distance runners on the squad, she has competed in four meets, finishing 10th or better at each one, including a fourth-place finish at the Class of ’32 Invite on January 31st.
Ahlborn, who is from Falls Church, Va., finished fourth overall in the weight throw with a mark of 13.85 meters at Dartmouth. A junior, she also posted sixth in the shot put with a distance of 11.02 meters.
The former Peddie School standout has been solid in a number of field events this season, finishing sixth or better in either the shot put or the weight throw through three meets. One of her best finishes came at the season-opening Gotham Cup, where she was second in the shot put and fourth in the weight throw.
The track & field teams return to action on Saturday when they head to Canton, N.Y., to compete in the 2010 Liberty League Indoor Championships at St. Lawrence University.