William & Mary's Henderson All-East as Women's Track and Field Races at ECACs

Ali Henderson, Julia Cathcart Break NCAA Regional Marks

NEW HAVEN, CT - Three-time All-American Ali Henderson (Parkville, MO) showed the steel that had earned her three All-American accolades as she raced to All-East honors as 2004 CAA Champion William and Mary women's track and field competed Friday at the ECAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The Tribe sits tied for 26th after the completion of five events with one point, along with Monmouth. Duke leads the ECACs with 23 points while New Hampshire is second with 18. Points are awarded to the top-eight finishers in each event, who receive All-East honors. The meet, hosted by Yale, attracts a large field of teams from across the Eastern U. S. and represents the last opportunity for athletes to set NCAA qualification times

Henderson, who has battled illness all of the outdoor season, limiting her competition, claimed eighth in the 3,000m steeplechase, only her second time contesting the event this year. Henderson clocked a season-fast 10:42.63 for the All-East honors, scoring a point for the Tribe. The pace qualifies Henderson for competition at the upcoming NCAA East Regional, as it was some 15 seconds below the qualification mark. Henderson's first steeplechase race of the season came just last weekend at James Madison where she qualified for ECACs in her first attempt at the event this year. It was only the fourth race of any distance that Henderson has contested during her outdoor campaign.

Also in action today, freshman Julia Cathcart (Starkville, MS) obliterated her personal record in the 5,000m by clocking a 16:51.17, some 27 seconds better than her previous best and five seconds below the NCAA Regional standard. Cathcart came up just shy of earning All-East acclaim as her time placed her tenth, less than two seconds off eighth place.

Sophomore Sarah McHale (Winchester, VA) set a personal record in the heptathlon with 4044 points with career best performances in three of the seven events: 100m hurdles (16.24), shot (33'4"), 800m (2:34.48).

The ECACs continue Saturday and Sunday.

ECAC Team Rankings - 5 Events Scored

1) Duke University 23
2) New Hampshire 18
3) Boston College 17
4) Pittsburgh 14
4) James Madison 14
6) Syracuse 10
7) Iona College 9
8) Connecticut 8
8) Liberty University 8
10) Yale University 7
10) Georgetown 7
12) Duquesne 6
12) North Carolina 6
12) Columbia 6
15) West Virginia 5
15) Dartmouth 5
15) Rutgers University 5
15) Providence 5
19) University of Maryland 4
19) Sacred Heart 4
21) Rhode Island 3
21) Binghamton 3
23) Pennsylvania 2
23) Northeastern 2
23) University of Vermont 2
26) William and Mary 1
26) Monmouth University 1