CASTLETON, Vt. -- The Vermont State University Castleton men's and women's track & field teams open their outdoor season this Saturday at the Yellow Jacket Open, hosted by American International College in Springfield, Mass.

The Spartans look to build on a strong indoor campaign that featured numerous podium finishes at the Little East Indoor Track & Field Championship, and they enter the outdoor season poised for a strong start.

Freshman Timothy Pratt (Granville, N.Y.) aims to build on an impressive collegiate debut after placing seventh in the 60-meter hurdles and ninth in the high jump at the conference championship. Pratt is slated to compete in the 110-meter hurdles—where the coaching staff believes his strengths are best showcased—as well as the high jump.

Joining Pratt on the track are returning sprinters Sean Roth (Lake Placid, N.Y.), Brody Hopkins (Essex, Vt.), Jay Carroll (East Dorset, Vt.), and Sean Dinan (Burlington, Vt.). Freshman Jayden Mikel (Schenectady, N.Y.) will make his outdoor debut and is one to watch this season. Nathan Benson (Granby, Mass.) will lead the Spartans in the distance events.

In the field, senior Britain Goodemote (Gloversville, N.Y.) looks to build on his second-place finish in the triple jump at the Little East Indoor Championship, where he earned All-Conference Second Team honors. Tanner Gintoff (Springfield, Vt.) and Rolguy Dimanche (Watertown, Mass.) will pace the Spartans in the throwing events.


On the women's side, the Spartans feature a deep and experienced group.

Senior Isabell Lanfear (West Rutland, Vt.) concluded her indoor season as an All-New England and USTFCCCA All-Region performer in the shot put. She placed fifth at the Little East Indoor Championship and finished second at the New England Championship, setting a program record to earn All-New England honors. A second-team All-Conference selection and New England qualifier in the javelin last season, Lanfear has her sights set on qualifying for nationals in her senior campaign.

Kalynn Stevenson (Coram, N.Y.) returns as one of the program's most decorated throwers, holding multiple school records. Her accolades include All-Region, All-Conference, and All-New England honors. During the indoor season, she broke her own program record in the weight throw and reset her shot put mark multiple times, placing second in the shot put and seventh in the weight throw at the conference championship. She also earned All-New England honors with an eighth-place finish at the regional meet. Outdoors, Stevenson is a multiple medalist at the conference level and became the first Spartan to place in the top three in the discus at the New England Outdoor Championship. She enters the season aiming to qualify for nationals in the discus while continuing to push the program standard in the shot put alongside Lanfear.

Joining Lanfear and Stevenson in the throws are sophomore Sienna Newth (North Attleboro, Mass.), who placed seventh in the shot put and ninth in the weight throw at the indoor conference championship, and junior Karli Martin (Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y.), who finished fourth in the weight throw and 12th in the shot put and will look to contend for a top-three finish in the hammer this spring. Junior Katelyn Yerdon (Troy, N.Y.), who placed 10th in the shot put at the conference championship, is poised for a strong outdoor season in the discus. Rounding out the group are junior Rylee Moreau (Agawam, Mass.), who will look to score in the hammer, and freshman Azaraya May (Lewiston, Maine), who will compete in the shot put and discus.

On the track, freshman Ariana Reynolds (Bennington, Vt.) is working back from an indoor injury and aims to qualify for the conference championship in the 400 meters. Senior Bethany Davis (White River Junction, Vt.) returns as one of the conference's top distance runners after qualifying for the New England Outdoor Championship in the 5,000 meters.

Sophomore Olivia Howard will expand her distance repertoire with the steeplechase this season, while senior Sarah Calvin looks to continue her development in the 800 meters.

The Spartans are led by head coach Ian Sawtelle, along with assistant coaches Mike Audette (distance), Caleb Lisai (sprints), and Danielle Solomon (hurdles/jumps).