After coming away with their third consecutive second place finish, the Ithaca College women’s track and field team looks to get back to their winning ways. Since head coach Jennifer Potter ’92 took over in 2004 the Bombers have won 16 conference titles and scored as a team at nationals 14 times outdoors.
In 2021 the Bombers finished fourth at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships, which was the last time the team placed on the podium.
Potter said it is a long stretch of competition with the regular season and championship meets spanning the duration of the spring semester. She said prioritizing her athletes’ well-being is a crucial factor toward the team’s success.
“We take a lot of pride in keeping people mentally healthy and sharp,” Potter said. “The coaches and players know exactly what is expected of them and know what they have to do to get back on top. The team is evenly split between underclassmen and upperclassmen.”
Sophomore Maddie Wright experienced that firsthand when she came in as a first-year student and fit right in. She said she wants to contribute everything she has to the team to break the second-place streak.
“[My goal is] hopefully creating a stronger bond with my teammates that I just met coming back [from abroad] and then I’d like to score,” Wright said. “Obviously, first if possible, but top five, [make] Leagues, regionals, stuff like that.”
The sophomore class was very successful last year as they had sophomore jumper Lydia Barber who was a conference champion in the Liberty League Championship Tournament high jump. Wright is also coming back after missing Fall 2024 to study abroad. She qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Spring 2024 in the high jump and placed in the top 25. Sophomore thrower/pole vaulter Talia Hutchinson is currently leading the team in pole vault with her personal best vault of 3.6 meters.
In addition to their top performance, Potter said the sophomores have been great leaders and set the example for the incoming class below them.
“The sophomore class had a lot of success last year,” Potter said. “I feel confident about where that younger group is and what they can accomplish.”
There have been many first-year standouts so far including first-year sprinter Aynisha Mcquillar who is ranked in the top 45, and the 60 right now in the country. Her and first-year runner Marykate Rudnicki were part of the 4×200 meter relay that broke the school record twice, bringing the original record down twice from 1:45.49 to 1:44.85 and then down to 1:43.46.
The Bombers depth on the front end of their team. Featuring the likes of senior hurdler Laura Suppa, and senior sprinter Natalie MacArthur. Along with the success of the seniors and underclassmen, there have been plenty of impressive performances from the junior class. Junior pole vaulter Bree Boyle finished top five in the Liberty League tournament for pole vault last year and Rachel Larson finished in the top five in hurdles 10 times already this year.
The team hired pole vaulting coach Dom Mikula ’24, who was a member of the team before graduating and joining the staff in Fall 2024. In the 2022-23 season Mikula was ranked the No. 1 pole vaulter in Division lll before going on to win the national championship for outdoor pole vaulting.
“Coach Dom is awesome,” Boyle said. “He’s really helped almost all of us get PRs this season. I think we’re in a really good place with him, and I’m excited to see where we can get going forward.”
Boyle credits the majority of her success to Mikula as she has hit new personal records she did not think were possible and has also been more consistent in her scores. She cleared 3.60 meters at the Nazareth Challenge Cup, which was tied for the highest in the event, but came in third because of the number of attempts taken.
As a first-year student Wright made it to nationals for the high jump where she placed 21st. She said she looks to continue that success and make it right back to nationals, but with more experience.
“Once I started seeing [improved] performances and what I was capable of … I was like, ‘Oh, okay, maybe I have a little more in me than I thought,’ and so that was exciting,” Wright said.
The Bombers look to wrap up their winter season with Liberty League Indoor Championships coming up Feb 28 and March 1. Outdoor competition starts March 28 when the Bombers will travel to Bridgewater, Virginia to compete in the Bridgewater Invitational.
“The goal is always to win a championship,” Potter said. “[We want to] get as many people as possible [qualified for] the NCAA Championships. We have a motto that we like to use and say: ‘Trust the process.’”
