Erin Brown, Sports Editor
Though the spring semester has begun, winter sports are still in session. After nearly a month-long break, the winter sports teams at the University of Southern Maine still have nearly half of their season to play. Many teams have found success thus far and are hoping to continue on to the postseason, while others are having a more difficult time finding their groove.
The men’s wrestling team has achieved much success over the past year. The team has gone 7-2 in regular matches, and has been successful in opens and invitationals. On Saturday Jan. 14, the team came in first place out of ten teams at the Jim Aquilar Open at Plymouth State University.
Among the team success at this meet, senior Daniel Del Gallo (Gardiner, ME / Gardiner Area) won his bracket to keep his undefeated streak alive. Del Gallo improved his record to 32-0 for his senior season at USM. Furthermore, he is the key member of the Huskies’ team to be looking out for during the remaining winter season. According to the Portland Press Herald article published on Jan. 18, the decorated wrestler has his sight set on not just making his way to nationals, but on becoming a national champion.
The women’s indoor track and field team is also a team to continue to watch, as the ladies opened up the season last semester with plenty of success. They took first place in 14 events and played their way to the top three spots 28 times. More recently, the women’s track and field team absolutely dominated in the Reggie Poyau Invitational held at Brandeis University. USM came in first out of eight teams with a score of 175.50 points. They tallied five first place spots amongst the 18 top three finishes they collected.
After the invitational, three members of the team were recognized with Little East Conference’s weekly honors. Senior Jasmine Boyle (Brunswick, ME/ Brunswick) was honored as track athlete of the week. Freshman Adela Kalilwa (Lewiston, ME/ Lewiston) was honored as rookie field athlete of the week. Senior Molly Gibeault (Brooklyn, CT/ Woodstock Academy) was named field athlete of the week with her impressive win at the pole vault, where she not only set a school record but also qualified for a spot at the New England Division III Championships and the NEICAAA New England Championships. Keep your eyes on Gibeault for the rest of the season to see where she success takes her next.
Men’s indoor track and field has also been no stranger to success so far this season. Like the women’s team, they too came in the top spot at the Reggie Poyau Invitational Jan. 14, which was held at Brandeis University. The Huskies tallied a total of 158 points in their victory over six teams.
Huskies sophomore Jared Marshall (Gloucester, MA/ Gloucester) found great success at the Reggie Poyau Invitational. He was able to come in first place in the 55-meter dash, the 55-meter hurdle and the 200 meters. All three wins also qualified Marshall for the New England Division III Championship proving that he is another athlete to be keeping tabs on for the rest of the winter season.
You can catch the Huskies wrestling team’s next home match Feb. 11 against Johnson and Wales. The Men and women’s track and field teams will both be home again for the third and final installment of the USM Open on Jan. 28.