Spiders at George Mason Invitational (Jan 29)

In the 3,000M Spider redshirts, Amy Van Alstine (9:43.66) and Nicol Traynor (9:47.56) went 1-2. Van Alstine will compete in the USATF National Cross Country Championships in San Diego, CA next weekend along with Matt Llano, Jon Wilson and Ryan Lee.

This past weekend at George Mason our Spiders made progress, and improved from the week before:

X'auntasia Johnson in the triple jump...

Coach Lambert talks with Amanda Caporelli and X'auntasia Johnson...

Freshman, Alli Mannon in the Mile...

5K-10K specialist, Levi Grandt following a PR in the Mile...

Ellis Mays (FR), Patrick Love (FR) and Kyle Ragan (r-FR) pause for a picture following the Mile.

Tremayne Graham prepares for the 60M dash final...HE placed 3rd in a personal best 7.01.

Stephanie Paradis (SO) in the DMR...

Junior, Andi DeFonce in the DMR...

Jenn Ennis anchors the DMR...

Spiders See Improvement At Patriot Games

The indoor track & field teams have a successful weekend at GMU.

by KC Rismiller
UR SID

Jan. 30, 2011

FAIRFAX, Va. - The Richmond men's and women's indoor track & field teams had an impressive showing this weekend at the Patriot Games hosted by George Mason University. Jenn Ennis, X'auntasia Johnson, Beth Kelly, Tremayne Graham and Devin Cassels all clinched top-five spots in their events.

"We made some good progress this week," said women's head coach Lori Taylor. "The team and individual focus on competing was good. We want to see this same progress each week as we move toward the championship part of our season.

Senior Jenn Ennis placed third in the mile run (5:03.61), followed by freshman Alli Mannon in seventh (5:11.03).

Spider's senior X'auntasia Johnson came in second-place in the women's triple jump with a mark of 11.54m.

Junior Beth Kelly finished fifth in the 3000m run with a time of 10:14.71, along with fellow junior Emma Berry who placed 13th (10:34.14).

Seniors Amy Van Alstine and Nicol Traynor also participated in the women's 3000m run, however, they ran unattached. Van Alstine clinched first-place with a time of 9:43.66, and Traynor finished second (9:47.56). Both women broke the Richmond 3000m record, however, it will not be official due to the women running unattached.

Van Alstine will be eligible to participate in the outdoor season, and before then, she will compete in the USA Cross Country Championships next weekend in San Diego, Calif. Traynor is redshirting the 2011 indoor season.

READ MORE HERE

A Few Photos From Recent Spider Workouts

A few photos from recent workouts by the University of Richmond Track & Field Teams...

Coach Lawson talks with Anne O'Toole and Meaghan McGovern at the St. Christopher's School Indoor Track & Field Facility. Within 1 mile of our campus, it's a welcome place to workout during the winter months.

Coach Lambert watches Kelsey McKenna as she practices.

Distance runner Levi Grandt is a blur as he and Conor Phelan stretch out their legs following a distance run... It's nice to be able to workout in a t-shirt and shorts on the St. Christopher's Indoor Track.

The 200M indoor track offers 8 sprint lanes and 6 oval lanes...

Andrew Benford and Kyle Ragan work on steeple drills...

Bell Isle in Richmond is a great place to run. The 54 acre island connects with several other trails, including the well known Buttermilk Trail.

From the parking lot off Canal Street you cross the unique foot bridge to access the island. In the background NCAA Qualifiers and school school record holders Amy Van Alstine and Nicol Traynor warm-up for a hard workout on the Bell Isle trails.

The foot bridge to Bell Isle.

The James River as it flows through the city of Richmond. In the background you can see Hollywood Falls a well know area to kayak and canoe... and fish.

2010 NCAA Cross Country Championship qualifier, Amy Van Alstine and 2009 NCAA Track & Field Championship qualifier Nicol Traynor as they progress through their threshold run on Bell Isle. Van Alstine (16:36) and Traynor (16:17) specialize in the 5K on the track although Traynor also holds the school record in the 3K steeple (10:27).

Matt Llano (2010 All-American-10K) and Andrew Benford (2010 A-10 Cross Country Champion) hammer along the James River.

Jon Wilson in form during a hard workout on Bell Isle. Although there are numerous trails throughout the island, the primary loop for hard workouts is roughly 1 mile of smooth trail.

Levi Grandt with the James River beside him.

Levi on one of the Bell Isle trails...

The north end of Bell Isle offers another great view of the James River.

Jon Wilson getting it done...

The Bell Isle Rolling Milling and Splitting Manufactory operated from roughly 1815 through 1900. From a sign at the sight: "Through the arched doorways mules pulled carts of scrap iron from England. Water powered the machinery. European immigrants and slaves provided the labor. The nails, wire and horse shoes were famous throughout the South."

Amy Van Alstine on the South side of Bell Isle.

Nicol Traynor passing the old factory...

Jon Wilson and Levi Grandt begin their warm-down.

Jon and Levi...

Jon and Levi....

The upper part of Hollywood Rapids...

Matt Llano, Andrew Benford and assistant men's coach, Jon Molz (UR '08) warm-down.

Llano, Benford and Molz...

Photo of the nail factory...From Wikipedia: "The island served as a prison for Union soldiers during the American Civil War. Between 1862 and 1865, the island was home to about 30,000 POW's and as many as 1,000 died. The nail factory was re-opened after the civil war and remained in operation until 1972. "

Amy Van Alstine and Nicol Traynor on the bridge.

The rapids on the James River.

Downtown Richmond on the left of the photo.

BANDY FIELD PARK

Map of Bandy Field Park located next to the University of Richmond campus.

Ryan Lee, Conor Phelan and Chris York at the start of a workout at Bandy Field.

Matt Llano, Andrew Benford, Levi Grandt, Chris York, Jon Wilson, Conor Phelan and Ryan Lee running in Bandy Field Park.

Same order as photo above...

Matt Llano and Andrew Benford.

Hill repeats next to Bandy Field Park. Tim Quinn leading the pack...

Jog down as recovery...

One of many hill repeats on this day...

Andrew Benford has steam coming off his body following the workout on this cool, crisp morning.

Sometimes you just have to laugh...

For anyone that has ever coached a team...watch this:

Senior track standout finds success by living his passions at UR

Below is an article published by the University of Richmond on Track & Field All-American, Matt Llano...Go HERE for a direct link.

Matt Llano, who will earn 3 degrees this spring

(Psychology, Spanish & Theatre),

shown here on his way to achieving All-America honors in the 10,000M

at the 2010 NCAA Track & Field Championships in Eugene, OR.

He achieved a season best of 28:51 in the event and

returned this fall leading the Spiders to 24th place

at the NCAA Cross Country Championships.

(Dan Petty Photo)

University of Richmond

NEWSROOM

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Matt Llano, '11
Senior track standout finds success by living his passions at UR

-

January 25, 2011

Matt Llano, ’11, was always taught to follow his passions to find his purpose in life.

Llano came to the University of Richmond with the intention of being a biology and chemistry major, but soon decided that wasn’t a path he wanted to pursue. Instead, he chose to combine three majors that were more in line with his personal interests.

With family from Spain and Puerto Rico, a major in Latin American and Iberian studies was a way to learn more about his heritage and the language of past generations. A psychology course at the University inspired him to take a more in depth look at the subject. And theatre was a chance to have fun with a creative outlet.

“For a long time, I had this idea that I wanted to be a doctor; that was my idea of success,” he says. “Then I realized that’s not what it’s all about and I wouldn’t be happy. I wanted to be sure that I was passionate about whatever I was doing.”

His time at Richmond also led Llano to consider turning his biggest passion — running — into a career.

Llano wasn’t a standout track athlete in high school, but still aspired to run for a Division I university.

READ MORE HERE.

The Value of a University of Richmond Education

Working Together to Achieve Excellence...

A new look has come to the University of Richmond...Standout track & field and cross country student-athlete Amy Van Alstine is featured on one of the banners located throughout campus...

Van Alstine has a decorated career at Richmond which includes her trip to the 2010 NCAA Cross Country Championships this past fall and the first round of the 2010 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. She holds a personal best of 16:38.00 in the 5,000M. For more on Amy's career go HERE.

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Below is a link to a recent YouTube video by the University of Richmond where several students talk about the value of the education you receive as a student: