Over the weekend, Buffalo's 100-meter hurdle record was shattered in a meet that nearly did not happen.
With turbulent weather in the forecast, Buffalo along with two other Division-1 programs decided to scrap their scheduled competition at UB Stadium and compete at Cortland instead. Due to the suddenness of the cancelation, only a select few participants were chosen to travel.
Junior sprinter Brooklynn Ventura was selected, and now she is the new school record holder in the 100-meter hurdles. Ventura won the event with a time of 13.60, almost a half second faster than her previous best.
Head coach Vicki Mitchell was very pleased with her team's performance under the unusual circumstances and was especially satisfied with Ventura's record setting effort.
"We were very, very excited for her," Mitchell said. "And very excited for our program, anytime we have one of our athletes set a record it is always a great thing."
For Buffalo it was another highlight in what has been a breakthrough season for the team. The women's 4x400 relay team has broken its own school record twice, most recently with a time of 3:28.43.
Junior thrower Becky O'Brien was invited to the Olympic qualifiers and has shattered the school record for shot put and discus throws. The team has also enjoyed success as an entire group. Achieving record success in the Mid-American Conference Indoor Championships, finishing second in the women's group.
Ventura was not the only Bull to have a strong performance at Cortland. Freshmen pole vaulter Kelly Truppo finished first by vaulting over 12 feet, a personal record. It was a strong day for all the participants in the event. Buffalo had three entries in it and placed first, second, and forth respectively. Freshmen Jenna Van Dusen finished second with an 11 foot eight inch jump, and sophomore Kaytlin Mack finished in fourth with a jump of 11 feet. It was one of the best showings by the group this season.
Buffalo was looking forward to its first home meet of the season with a chance to compete in front of local friends and family, but the weather forecast was just too severe.
"It was projected to be forty degrees and very windy," Mitchell said. "Which is very risky conditions for the level of athletes that we have especially for the sprinting events and field events where there are short explosive movements in that cold conditions there is a risk of injury."
Although many members of the track team were left behind for this event Mitchell feels that the performance of the select people who went can only empower the team as they compete at their upcoming events.
"We look ahead to a big meet at The Penn Relays this coming week with some of our athletes," Mitchell said. "The rest of them will compete at the Cornell Big Red Invite on Sunday."
The Penn Relays and Cornell Invitational should prove to be a good challenge for Buffalo as they continue their journey to Mid-American Conference Championships where they will look to compete for the school's first ever first title.
The events will get underway on Friday.
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