TRACK & FIELD NOTEBOOK
Vermont track & field returns from Winter Break for the Middlebury Winter Classic on Saturday (Jan. 15) at Middlebury College. The event kicks off at 11 a.m. at Virtue Field House. Fans can tune in to the action live on NSNSports.net. Live results will be updated throughout the day at 802timing.com.
 
RELATED LINKS
Watch | Live Results
@UVMTrackXC Instagram
 
COACH'S QUOTE
"We're pleased to be able to get some of our folks back into action and generate performance marks toward to the indoor championships," said head coach Matt Belfield. "It's not a huge meet, so we'll take the opportunity to evaluate where we are with our fitness and technique, and go from there. I do expect that we will have some personal best performances, as many of our men and women have done good work over break to be ready for competition."
 
FOLLOW UVM TRACK & CROSS COUNTRY ON INSTAGRAM
Fans can follow the Vermont track & field and cross country program on its new Instagram account by searching @UVMTrackXC.
 
THE OPPONENTS
The Catamounts will be competing against four other teams in the Middlebury Winter Classic. Castleton and Middlebury will join Vermont as the three schools hailing from the Green Mountain State. The Liberty League's Bard College and Plymouth State from the Little East Conference will also be competing on Saturday.
 
STAYING CLOSE TO HOME
Saturday's Winter Classic is the first of three consecutive meets for the Catamounts down at Middlebury. Vermont will return to Virtue Field House for the Snowflake (Jan. 22) and Invitational (Jan. 29).
 
HOME MEET
The Catamounts will host a home meet at Gardner-Collins Indoor Track for the first time since the North Country All-Comers in 2019. Vermont will host New Hampshire on February 13 at 12 p.m.
 
VERMONT CAPTAINS
UVM's leadership groups were announced at the start of the season. The Vermont men selected Chike Asanya, Andrew Crompton, Wyatt Matyas, Zane Russom, and DJ Snide to lead them in the 2021-22 campaign. Mary Diestel, Mia Grasso, Jane Leighton, Hayley Ross, and Sofia Wittmann were chosen to captain the UVM women.
 
OPENING THE SEASON IN 1ST
The Vermont men kickstarted the 2021-22 indoor campaign with a share of first place in the season's first meet at Dartmouth on Dec. 11. The UVM men accrued 155 points, led by Jake Bair who secured a 400-meter victory and a second-place finish in the 200-meter dash. The Vermont women posted a strong performance in the season opener, earning a second-place finish with 173 points. Jane Leighton logged a blistering 3000-meter pace of 9:55.96 to win by a margin of 32.2 seconds.
 
BAIR'S AMERICA EAST WEEKLY HONOR
Prior to Winter Break, junior Jake Bair was named America East Male Track Performer of the Week, following his strong opening meet at Dartmouth. Bair registred a 40—meter mark of 49.84 seconds for first place, and added a 200-meter of time of 22.56 seconds that earned second place. Bair's adjusted 200-meter time of 22.17 seconds is currently the second-fastest mark in the conference.