Despite having only a quarter of the track and field team, Head Coach Kori Stoffregen liked what he saw over Winter Term.
14 individuals traveled to Terre Haute this past January to compete in the Rose-Hulman invitational, which was seen as a simple tune-up race.
“Indoor for us is a little bit more of a catch-up type period because we didn’t do much in January because everyone was gone,” Stoffregen said. “It takes us a little while to kind of get going.”
Sophomore Polo Burguete and senior Marcus Dozier led the men's team. While Burguete won the 3K race, Dozier placed first in the shot put.
Senior Paul Watts was especially impressed with Burguete’s performance.
“The shape he’s in right now is unprecedented,” said Watts, who finished fifth in the 3K with an impressive 9:04.53. “Normally during the span of an indoor season… we’ll get about 20 seconds better on a 3K. If Polo gets 20 seconds better, he’ll set the school record.”
On the women’s side, first-year sprinter Kaitlyn Daaen won both the 60-meter dash (8.21 seconds) and the 200 meter (27.47) while first-year pole vaulter Dilan Palmer finished fourth with a mark of 2.93 meters.
Sophomore Cami Etgen also had a strong race in the 200 meter, finishing second with a time of 27.66 seconds.
Injuries have already become a factor in the early season for the women, as the Tigers will miss the presence of distance runners Claudia Monnet (junior) and Heather O’Brien (senior), as well as pole vaulter Rachel Gutish (sophomore).
With sophomore Josh Ebikwo’s transfer to Purdue and senior Amen Galley's ACL tear during the football season, the men’s team will be relying heavily on their distance runners.
Tigers to Watch For This Season:
Marcus Dozier (Senior): What hasn’t Marcus Dozier done? Recently named the NCAC Men’s Field Athlete of the Week, Dozier broke his own school record in the shot put twice at Rose-Hulman. With a four-meter lead over the second best shot mark in Conference, Dozier is already comparing his results to National numbers. After fouling out of Nationals last season, the All-American will be looking to win it all in both the shot put and discus this spring.
Polo Burguete (Sophomore): Having already established himself as one of DePauw’s top cross country runners, Burguete has looked just as strong in long-distance track events. The sophomore’s performance at Rose-Hulman is a sign for things to come. Burguete will also be competing in the 1500 meter and 5K throughout the course of the indoor and outdoor seasons.
Dilan Palmer (Freshman): Until Rachel Gutish returns in early March, all eyes will be on Palmer, as she will be the lone pole-vaulter for the women’s team. But after, it’s not hard to imagine the freshman filling Gutish’s shoes. Palmer’s arrival will create an intimidating one-two punch at Conference.
Paul Christian (Freshman): Christian burst onto the scene in the fall as one of DePauw’s top cross country runners, finishing 12th at Conference and ultimately advancing to Nationals. Now, he’ll look to repeat his success as he joins Burguete, Watts and the rest of DePauw’s already strong group of distance runners.
Kaitlyn Daaen (Freshman): Daaen’s two wins in her first collegiate meet are promising signs as far as depth for the women’s team goes, with the first-year has proven her ability to take her skills to the next level. As long as she stays healthy, Daaen will be right up there with the rest of DePauw’s talented group of sprinters.
Upcoming Meets:
The DePauw community will have numerous chances to catch the Tigers at home, as they will be hosting their next three indoor meets with the Tiger Small College Invitational (today), The DePauw Invitational (Saturday the 13th) and the DePauw Classic (Saturday the 20th). The Tigers then won’t be returning home until the second week of April during the outdoor season. Conference competition will be crucial for DePauw, as other teams have already competed in multiple meets.
“As far as from a Conference standpoint, I think we’re stronger,“ Dozier said. “The biggest problem that we have… is that we still lack numbers as compared to [Wabash and Ohio Wesleyan]... but I do think we’ll be strong this year.”