First 2024 NAC Track & Field Weekly Honors Announced
Men’s Outdoor Track & Field
Track Athlete of the Week:
Justin Castaldo – Senior – UMaine-Farmington
UMaine-Farmington senior Justin Castaldo (Scarborough, Maine) posted a 32:54.60 time in the 10,000-meter event last Friday at the SNHU Invitational. With the performance, Castaldo placed second overall in the event and qualified for the New England Championship.
Field Athlete of the Week:
Eli Wilson – Junior – VTSU-Johnson
VTSU-Johnson junior Eli Wilson (New Castle, Del.) won the high jump at the SNHU Invitational with a school record of 6' 8.75". This mark is currently 6th in in NCAA III national rankings and leads the conference by eight inches. Had Wilson competed in indoor track (basketball focus during the winter), this mark would have brought him All-American honors at the national meet.
Rookie of the Week:
Owen Booker – Freshman – UMaine-Farmington
UMaine-Farmington freshman Owen Booker (Lisbon, Maine) delivered an impressive performance at the SNHU Invitational, earning third place overall in the javelin throw. His top mark of 55.51 meters not only shattered the program record by more than 10 meters but also secured him a spot at the New England Regionals.
Women’s Outdoor Track & Field
Track Athlete of the Week:
Ava Dowling – Senior – Husson University
Husson University senior Ava Dowling (Newburgh, Maine) qualified for the New England DIII Outdoor Track & Field Championships in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Tufts Snowflake Classic. Dowling finished second overall in the event with a time of 12:10.91.
Field Athlete of the Week:
Forest Skillman – Freshman – VTSU-Johnson
VTSU-Johnson freshman Forest Skillman (Cambridge, Vt.) claimed third place overall — and second among Division III competitors — in the long jump at the SNHU Invitational with a school-record leap of 16'2.5". The mark currently ranks her second in the NAC standings and would have been good enough for a runner-up finish at the 2024 NAC Championship.
Rookie of the Week:
Emma Syphers – Freshman – UMaine-Farmington
UMaine-Farmington freshman Emma Syphers (Bangor, Maine) finished with a pair of fifth-place finishes last Friday at the SNHU Invitational, reaching 4.88 meters in the long jump and 9.99 meters in the triple jump.